Simon Hoare

Simon Hoare, MP for North Dorset, has had a long career in the Conservative party. Having worked at Conservative Central Office, he was appointed personal assistant to the Conservative leader of Kingston-upon-Thames council. In the 1990s, Hoare worked in public relations, becoming head of property at Ketchum, accounts director at PPS Group and an external affairs director at the Environmental Services Association. After setting up his own lobbying and public relations company, Community Connect, Hoare served as a councillor on Oxfordshire County Council, a cabinet member on West Oxfordshire District Council, and part of the executive of the Witney Conservative Association. After two unsuccessful attempts, contesting Cardiff West in 1997 and Cardiff South & Penarth in 2010, Hoare won the seat of North Dorset in 2015 with an increased Conservative majority of 21,118. He has held a number of parliamentary positions, including as chair of the All-Party Parliamentary Groups on Multiple Sclerosis and on Thalidomide, a spell as parliamentary private secretary to Home Secretary Sajid Javid, as well as sitting on the Procedure, Regulatory Reform and Welsh Affairs Committees. He currently chairs the Northern Ireland Affairs Committee and sits on the Liaison Committee.