James Duddridge was first elected as the Conservative MP for Rochford and Southend East in 2005. He was reelected in 2019 with a majority of 12,286.
The constituency of Rochford and South East is found in the far south eastern corner of Essex. Covering a stretch of coast at the far end of the Thames Estuary this seat contains the centre of Southend itself, with its famously long pier and seaside amusements, as well as the satellite communities of Rochford, Prittlewell, Shoeburyness and Thorpe Bay. Southend’s growing airport, as well as a campus from Essex University, are both found within this seat. Although the Labour Party have a solid base of support in this constituency, it has for now, remained solid for the Conservatives. Three fifths of the local population backed Brexit in the 2016 EU referendum.
- James Duddridge MP was appointed a Minister of State in the Department for International Trade in September 2022 by Liz Truss. He was not reappointed to the government when Rishi Suank became prime minister in October 2022.
- Duddridge has previously worked as PPS to Boris Johnson between February and July 2022.
- He was very active in defending the prme minister, including on the airwaves, as the prime minister in the last months of the Johnson premiership. Duddridge was appointed a government whip by Boris Johnson between July and September 2022.
In an earlier minsterial career, Duddridge served as Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Africa at the Foreign Office between 2020 and 2021. Prior to that he served as Under Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union between 2019 and 2020. Previously he was a government whip, between 2010 and 2012.
Born in Bristol in 1971, Duddridge graduated from the University of Essex with a degree in Government. After leaving university, he joined Barclays Bank, and worked for the company in Swaziland and the Ivory Coast where he became national sales manager in 1998. He ended up running the bank’s operations in Botswana, managing 750 staff.
Duddridge was also involved in the early formation of the polling firm, YouGov.
Duddridge was a supporter of Brexit in the 2016 EU referendum. He backed Boris Johnson in the 2019 Conservative Party leadership election, having previously written a letter of no confidence in the former Prime Minister, Theresa May.
Duddridge also previously tabled a motion of no confidence in the former Speaker, John Bercow.
Duddridge enjoys football, running, cycling, and DIY.
Email: james@jamesduddridge.com
Personal Website: http://www.jamesduddridge.com
Twitter: @JamesDuddridge
