Labour Party MP for Hertford and Stortford.
One of the most active new Labour MPs in a formerly safe Tory seat, Josh Dean has spent recent months pushing children's SEND provision to the top of the agenda — securing Prime Minister's backing for a ministerial meeting on local special needs services in March 2026, and raising a post office closure in Thorley Park on the Commons floor. His one rebel vote came on the assisted dying bill in June 2025, where he backed a new clause on guidance and consultation — and his voting profile consistently sits slightly to the sceptical side of his party on end-of-life legislation, around 12--14 percentage points below Labour's average on autonomy and safeguard measures.
At 94% voting participation and 99.8% party alignment, Dean is a high-attendance, high-loyalty MP — well above the Commons average for both. His stance profile shows strong support for workers' rights and progressive taxation (100% aligned), but low scores on business-friendly measures (12%) and parliamentary scrutiny (4%), suggesting he backs the government's programme without pushing for extra checks on it. His speech activity spans economy, health, education, and social care, with over 100 contributions since July 2024 — a substantial output for a first-term backbencher. He has disclosed a personal ADHD diagnosis, which appears to inform his focus on SEND and children's mental health.
Dean represents Hertford and Stortford — historically a safe Conservative seat — having made history as its first Labour MP in July 2024. Local news coverage is broadly neutral in aggregate, with the most prominent stories centred on his constituency casework rather than controversy. He holds no committee seats. Voting data and news sentiment cover the full period since his election; speech topic categorisation is drawn from parliamentary records through June 2026.
Josh Dean is the Labour MP for Hertford and Stortford, and has been an MP continually since 4 July 2024.
Top eight by total divisions voted, this parliament. Volume measures engagement, not direction — see Notable Votes for free-vote moments and rebellions.
Source · The Public Whip · Hansard
Moments where the whip was free, or where Dean broke ranks. Free votes are the truer signal of personal stance.
| Date | Bill / motion | Vote | Whip |
|---|---|---|---|
| 13 Jun 2025 | Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill: New Clause 2 | Yes | Freevs party |
Source · Hansard
“Emphasises the role of trusted adults and youth workers in tackling youth unemployment and NEETs, calling for Young Futures hubs to act as centres of relational practice.”
“Young people face systemic financial exclusion—thin credit files, unaffordable insurance, inadequate financial education for ages 16-24, and mental health impacts—requiring governm…”
“Youth hubs must be designed flexibly to overcome rural barriers such as transport and distance, potentially operating across multiple venues rather than a single location.”
“Highlighted that young people with undiagnosed ADHD are disproportionately likely to be NEET, calling for cross-government support including through the Milburn review.”
Dean holds no select-committee seat this session. New 2024-intake MPs typically wait one term before being appointed.
| Department | Qs | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Department for Culture, Media and Sport | 6 | 35.3% |
| Department for Education | 5 | 29.4% |
| Department for Work and Pensions | 2 | 11.8% |
| Home Office | 2 | 11.8% |
| Cabinet Office | 1 | 5.9% |
| Department of Health and Social Care | 1 | 5.9% |
Whether she is taking steps to help ensure that the proposed school inclusion bases are designed as integrated, short-term bridges back to mainstream education rather than pathways toward permanent exclusion.
Inclusion bases will have specialisms, providing tailored and expert teaching and support for specific groups of children. We know there are lots of great examples of mainstream schools delivering specialist provision through inclusion base…read full →
What steps her Department is taking to encourage and incentivise mainstream schools to use data-driven assessment tools to identify children’s hidden social, emotional, and mental health needs before they escal
The department is supporting mainstream schools to take a more evidence‑based approach to early identification of need, including social, emotional and mental health needs.We are developing National Inclusion Standards, backed by up to £15 …read full →
Whether Ofsted or another regulatory body will be mandated to track the destination outcomes of children placed in school inclusion bases.
Inclusion bases will have specialisms, providing tailored and expert teaching and support for specific groups of children. We know there are lots of great examples of mainstream schools delivering specialist provision through inclusion base…read full →
What steps she is taking to ensure that the new initial teacher training and early career framework includes content related to (a) identifying children’s social and emotional developmental needs and (b) suppor
The Initial Teacher Training (ITT) and Early Career Framework covers the first three years or more of a teacher’s career. It sets out a minimum entitlement to training for all new teachers and, following a review, now contains significantly…read full →
Type of land/property: Residential property (Flat)
Type of land/property: Residential property (Flat)
Number of properties: 1
Location: East Hertfordshire
Interest held: from 18 July 2025
… |
Trustee of Future Living, a domestic abuse charity based in Hertford. This is an Trustee of Future Living, a domestic abuse charity based in Hertford. This is an unpaid role.
Date interest arose: 11 June 2025
(Registere… |
Source · Members API · Last amended 2 Sept 2025
| Category | £ | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Staffing | 136,805 | 80.8% |
| Office Costs | 32,146 | 19.0% |
| Staff Travel | 399 | 0.2% |
| Total · 113 claims | 169,349 | 100% |
Source · IPSA · FY 24_25
Nothing tabled for Dean on the published Order Paper this week.