John Cooper (British politician)

Cooper started his career working on the Stranraer and Wigtownshire Free Press weekly newspaper in 1984. He subsequently returned as editor in 2019.^[1] He has also worked at the Irish Daily Mail and Scottish Daily Mail.^[2]

Following the decision of sitting MP Alister Jack not to seek re-election in 2024, Cooper—who had served as Jack's special adviser on media relations—was selected as the Scottish Conservative Party candidate for Dumfries and Galloway. He successfully held the seat for the Conservatives in the 2024 general election, maintaining a majority of 930 votes.

In Westminster, Cooper has focused on economic and industrial policy. On 21 October 2024, he was elected to the Business and Trade Select Committee,^[3] and in March 2025, he was further appointed to the Sub-Committee on Economic Security, Arms and Export Controls. Throughout 2025 and early 2026, his parliamentary work has been defined by advocacy for South Scotland infrastructure, specifically regarding the A75 and A77 road corridors.^[4]

Cooper was raised in Stranraer and attended Rephad Primary and Stranraer Academy. He has cited his upbringing in the region as a primary influence on his political focus on rural depopulation. He is married to Patricia, a journalist originally from Dumfries; the couple has three children.

Outside of his political and journalistic career, Cooper is a musician who has played the drums in various bands since his teenage years. In a 2025 interview with Holyrood,^[5] he described his early years as a "straight-A student" by day and a "rock and roll" drummer by night. He is also a motorsport enthusiast and an advocate for lifelong learning, having completed a Master of Arts (MA) in Military History from the University of Birmingham via distance learning.^[6]