Labour Party MP for Warwick and Leamington.
A loyalist on paper, but one with a distinct foreign policy profile: Western has been among Labour's more vocal MPs on Ukraine and national security, contributing to defence debates 48 times and chairing the Joint Committee on National Security Strategy, where he recently called on the government to publish a clearer national security plan. In news coverage he has gone further, writing in The Guardian defending Starmer's approach to the Middle East and publicly criticising Warwick and Leamington Council for removing a Ukrainian flag outside its offices — calling it "deeply troubling" after meeting with diplomats. These are not the actions of a backbench passenger.
His parliamentary record shows a solid but not exceptional level of activity. At 70% voting participation he sits below the Commons average, though he has no rebel votes and aligns 100% with Labour on divisions cast. His stance data flags low scores on civil liberties (17%) and parliamentary scrutiny (19%), meaning he has consistently backed the government on limiting debate and resisting amendments — including voting to restrict debate time on the National Security (State Threats) Bill. Against party norms, he is notably more supportive of assisted dying access (+31 percentage points above the Labour average) and more sceptical of criminal justice reform (-41 points).
His committee work on Business and Trade — including its sub-committee on economic security and arms export controls — maps directly onto his top speech topics of economy, defence, and energy. He has also co-hosted a local jobs fair, suggesting active constituency engagement alongside his parliamentary brief. Economy and jobs dominate his local news coverage, though sentiment scores are broadly neutral. Voting data covers the current parliament; speech topics reflect the full parliamentary record available.
Matt Western is the Labour MP for Warwick and Leamington, and has been an MP continually since 8 June 2017.
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 Western broke ranks. Free votes are the truer signal of personal stance.
No rebellions or free votes recorded yet.
Source · Hansard
“Intervened to welcome the mileage increase as long-overdue and praised the End Fuel Poverty Coalition's backing for the measure.”
“E1 expansion will permanently destroy two-state solution and constitute war crime through forced displacement; demands urgent legislation, comprehensive sanctions on all participat…”
“Chair of JCNSS calls for increased, clearly specified national security spending and a national conversation on resilience; praises government trajectory on 1.5% GDP target but dem…”
“UK should adopt dual-use infrastructure planning similar to Scandinavian and Baltic states, including widening motorways for potential military aircraft use.”
Select, joint and other committees Western currently sits on. Committee work is where much of the line-by-line scrutiny of bills and departments happens, away from the chamber.
| Committee | Role | Type |
|---|---|---|
| Business and Trade Sub-Committee on Economic Security, Arms and Export Controls | Member | Select |
| Panel of Chairs | Member | Select |
| Business and Trade Committee | Member | Select |
Source · UK Parliament Committees API
Committee seats are where backbenchers shape legislation and hold departments to account. Western sits on 3.
| Department | Qs | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Department for Business and Trade | 5 | 16.1% |
| Cabinet Office | 5 | 16.1% |
| Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office | 4 | 12.9% |
| Department of Health and Social Care | 3 | 9.7% |
| Attorney General | 3 | 9.7% |
| Department for Science, Innovation and Technology | 2 | 6.5% |
| Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government | 2 | 6.5% |
| Home Office | 2 | 6.5% |
Food and Rural Affairs, what progress the Government has made in its target to deliver half of the food in the public sector from local and sustainable sources.
The Government remains committed to ensuring that at least half of public sector food is locally sourced or meets higher environmental standards within legal constraints. There is limited existing data about the origin and sustainability of…read full →
Whether his Department has made an assessment of the risks that private prosecutions in the United Kingdom may be used by well‑resourced organisations to (a) target and (b) intimidate individuals associated with pro‑Palestinian advocacy.
Any individual or organisation in England and Wales has the right to bring a private prosecution where a criminal offence has been committed.The Government expects all organisations that bring private prosecutions to do so where there is su…read full →
What date is the earliest evidence of bribery in the case of R. v. Nathan Gill.
The dates of the bribery offences are a matter of public record, the earliest being 6 December 2018.
Whether his Department holds data on communication between members of the European Parliament, UK Parliament and members of UK devolved legislatures and Oleh Voloshyn in the period between 2014-2019.
The department has conducted a search of the electronic materials currently available to it. No data on communications within the scope of this question was identified.
Yachad Name of donor: Yachad
Address of donor: Star House, 104-108 Grafton Road NW5 4BA
Estimate of the probable value (or amount of any donation… |
(1) Government of Jersey London Office (2) States of Guernsey (3) Commonwealth Parliamentary Association Name of donor: (1) Government of Jersey London Office (2) States of Guernsey (3) Commonwealth Parliamentary Association
Address of donor:… |
Type of land/property: Residential property (house)
Type of land/property: Residential property (house)
Number of properties: 1
Location: Dorset
Ownership details: Owned jointly with a fami… |
Name of company or organisation: Apple
Name of company or organisation: Apple
Nature of business: Technology company
(Registered 5 July 2017) |
Source · Members API · Last amended 30 Jun 2026
| Category | £ | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Staffing | 250,811 | 80.0% |
| Office Costs | 33,684 | 10.8% |
| Accommodation | 23,721 | 7.6% |
| MP Travel | 3,888 | 1.2% |
| Staff Travel | 1,043 | 0.3% |
| Total · 278 claims | 313,338 | 100% |
Source · IPSA · FY 24_25
Nothing tabled for Western on the published Order Paper this week.
| Year | Constituency | Votes | Share | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | Warwick and Leamington | 23,975 | 48.7% | Won |
| 2019 | Warwick and Leamington | 23,718 | 43.8% | Won |
| 2017 | Warwick and Leamington | 25,227 | 46.7% | Won |
| Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Matt WesternWON | Lab | 23,975 | 48.7 |
Showing the MP’s own row only. Full result table: see Warwick and Leamington →