Richard Baker.

Richard Baker's most significant recent break with his party came on 20 June 2025, when he voted against the Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill at Third Reading — one of only four rebel votes in his record, all cast the same day. He also voted against two amendments that would have closed the voluntary starvation loophole, while backing a procedural move to allow New Clause 16 to be considered. Outside Westminster, Baker has pursued a visible constituency campaign around Scottish shipbuilding: he led a Commons debate criticising the SNP for skipping shipbuilding discussions, lobbied the Defence Secretary to award the Faslane contract to the Methil yard, and welcomed the Harland & Wolff rescue deal as a personal priority since his election in 2024.

At 77% voting participation, Baker falls somewhat below the Commons average. He votes with Labour 97% of the time, making his assisted dying rebellion the clearest point of independent judgement. His stance profile shows strong alignment on progressive taxation (100%) and housing development (93%), but low alignment with pro-business and parliamentary scrutiny positions, both below 20%. His 124 contributions across 79 debates skew heavily toward economy and jobs, defence, and social care — consistent with his shipbuilding advocacy and his recognition of a Fife charity working on male suicide prevention.

Baker sits on the Public Administration and Constitutional Affairs Committee, though his speech topics suggest constituency economic concerns dominate his workload far more than constitutional questions. His deviation data shows he votes more favourably on end-of-life autonomy and assisted dying safeguards than most Labour MPs, which fits his Third Reading rebellion. News coverage is positive in tone and locally focused. Voting data extends to mid-2026; speech and news records are recent.