Mark Harper was first elected as the Conservative MP for Forest of Dean in 2005 being reelected in 2019 with a majority of 15,869.
The Forest of Dean constituency is a rural seat found on the western side of Gloucestershire along the River Severn and close to the Welsh border. Containing the market towns of Coleford and Cinderford, this area has a mining and industrial heritage. The seat contains the Royal Forest of Dean which dates back over a thousand years. This constituency is one of the ‘whitest’ seats in Britain in terms of its ethnic mix, and home ownership levels are well above the national average. The seat was won by Labour in its landslide years of 1997 and 2001, but has turned back to the Conservatives in recent elections, with the party winning close to 60% of the vote herein 2019.
Mark Harper was appointed as secretary of state for transport under Rishi Sunak in October 2022.
He previously served as the Government Chief Whip under David Cameron between 2015 and 2016 before being removed by Theresa May when she became Prime Minister.
He later became a fierce critic of Boris Johnson on the Conservative backbenches.
In 2021, he was one of the most outspoken MPs in relation to the need for a faster easing of Covid 19 restrictions. He served as Chair of the Covid Recovery Group, a group of MPs opposed to the continuation of lockdown restrictions.
Following the partygate affair in 2022, Harper called on Boris Johnson to resign, telling the House of Commons that Boris Johnson is “no longer worthy of the great office that he holds.”
He previously served as Minister of State for Disabled People (2014-2015),
Harper was also once the Minister of State for Immigration between 2012 and 2014, but resigned in 2014 when it was discovered that his cleaner was an illegal immigrant. He had been Parliamentary Secretary at the Cabinet Office between 2010 and 2012.
Harper was born in 1970 and was educated at the Headlands School, Swindon College and Brasenose College, University of Oxford. He qualified as a Chartered Accountant with KPMG in 1995. Until 2002, he worked for Intel Corporation in a variety of roles including finance, business operations and marketing before establishing his own chartered accountancy business in the Forest of Dean.
Harper supported Remain in the 2016 EU referendum.
Harper stood in the 2019 Conservative Party leadership election, but was soon eliminated from the contest having secured the backing of just a handful MPs.
Mark Harper was previously Chair of the All Party Parliamentary Groups on the Western Gateway; and Learning Disability.
Harper is married and the owner of two rescue labradors.
Email: mark.harper.mp@parliament.uk
Personal Website: http://www.markharper.org/
Twitter: @Mark_J_Harper
Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/mark.harper.fod
