Lord Blencathra

Conservative

MP for Life peer

Parliamentary Office

contactholmember@parliament.uk 020 7219 5353

House of Lords, London, SW1A 0PW

Top Focus Areas

The Senior Deputy SpeakerDepartment for TransportHome OfficeDepartment of Health and Social CareMinistry of Justice

Current Role

Shadow Minister (Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

Parliamentary Career

Positions Held

Shadow Minister (Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

Sept 2024 - Present

Opposition Chief Whip (Commons)

Whips Office (Commons)

Sept 2001 - May 2005

Minister of State (Home Office)

Home Office

May 1993 - May 1997

Minister (Department of Environment) (Environment and Countryside)

Department for the Environment

Apr 1992 - May 1993

Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food)

Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food

Jun 1989 - Apr 1992

Lord Commissioner (HM Treasury) (Whip)

HM Treasury

Jul 1988 - Jul 1989

Assistant Whip (HM Treasury)

HM Treasury

Jun 1987 - Jul 1988

Constituencies

Penrith and The Border

Elected 3 times

May 1997 - May 2010

Penrith and The Border

Elected 3 times

Jul 1983 - May 1997

Registered Interests

No registered interests found.

Recent Votes

No voting records found

Committee Memberships

Absent Voting (Elections in Scotland and Wales) BillCommons Administration CommitteeCommons Administration Estimate Audit and Risk Assurance CommitteeCommons Audit and Risk Assurance Committee (Lords)Lords Autism Act 2009 CommitteeLords Backbench Business CommitteeCommons Bishop's Stortford Cemetery BillCommons Built Environment CommitteeLords Bus Services (No. 2) Bill [HL]Commons Bus Services (No. 2) Bill [HL]: Programming sub-committeeCommons Business and Trade CommitteeCommons Business and Trade Sub-Committee on Economic Security, Arms and Export ControlsCommons Cheltenham Borough Council (Markets) BillCommons Childhood Vaccinations CommitteeLords City of London (Markets) BillCommons Committee of PrivilegesCommons Committee of SelectionCommons Committee of Selection (Lords)Lords Committee on StandardsCommons Committees on Arms Export ControlsCommons Commons Reference Group on Representation and InclusionCommons Communications and Digital CommitteeLords Conduct CommitteeLords Consolidation, &c., Bills (Joint Committee)Joint Constitution CommitteeLords Controlled Drugs (Procedure for Specification) BillCommons Court of RefereesCommons Courts (Remote Hearings) BillCommons Culture, Media and Sport CommitteeCommons Culture, Media and Sport Sub-committee on Online Harms and DisinformationCommons

Recent Questions

1037 questions on record

To ask The Senior Deputy Speaker whether the Renewal and Restoration Client Board plans to publish proposals for the provision of food for members of parliament, peers, staff and visitors in cafes and restaurants in the planned decant locations.

Answered

To: Restoration and Renewal Client Board • 6 Feb 2026

To ask The Senior Deputy Speaker what is the purpose and function of the scaffolding being constructed around Victoria Tower; and whether any people will work under that scaffolding.

Answered

To: The Senior Deputy Speaker • 4 Feb 2026

To ask His Majesty's Government what consideration they have given in Project Troubler and Project Grayburn to the decision by the US Army to standardise their rifles and light machine guns on a common 6.8-millimetre calibre.

Answered

To: Ministry of Defence • 9 Jan 2026

To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the difficulties posed by soldiers in the same platoon using different calibre weapons and ammunition.

Answered

To: Ministry of Defence • 9 Jan 2026

To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to ensure that the calibre of the rifle selected under Project Grayburn is the same as the calibre for the light machine gun selected under Project Troubler.

Answered

To: Ministry of Defence • 9 Jan 2026

View all questions

Positions Held

Shadow Minister (Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

Sept 2024 - Present

Opposition Chief Whip (Commons)

Whips Office (Commons)

Sept 2001 - May 2005

Minister of State (Home Office)

Home Office

May 1993 - May 1997

Minister (Department of Environment) (Environment and Countryside)

Department for the Environment

Apr 1992 - May 1993

Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food)

Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food

Jun 1989 - Apr 1992

Lord Commissioner (HM Treasury) (Whip)

HM Treasury

Jul 1988 - Jul 1989

Assistant Whip (HM Treasury)

HM Treasury

Jun 1987 - Jul 1988

Constituencies

Penrith and The Border

Elected 3 times

May 1997 - May 2010

Penrith and The Border

Elected 3 times

Jul 1983 - May 1997