A highly decorated former Army officer has been elected as the Conservative Member of Parliament for Spelthorne, the constituency of former Chancellor, Kwasi Kwarteng.
Lincoln Jopp said he was honoured to be elected and would “always put community first”. He has vowed to bring more inward investment into the borough, boost jobs in the constituency, campaign for transport improvements and more opportunities for young people in Spelthorne.
He said: “It is my absolute honour to be elected. It was a hard fought campaign in Spelthorne but I have never been one to shy from the battle. Now elected, I will always put the community first. Spelthorne has an incredible community spirit, is home to some world-class businesses and attracts millions of visitors every year.
“I want to work alongside the people in the area to ensure Spelthorne goes from strength to strength. I will ensure that residents and visitors alike will get the transport improvements they need, that businesses - large and small - get the support they deserve to help them grow and the right opportunities are unlocked for everyone who wants to work hard and get on.”
Mr Jopp enjoyed a distinguished career in the British Army for more than 20 years. He commanded the 1st Battalion Scots Guards in operations in Afghanistan and served in Iraq, Northern Ireland and Sierra Leone. He was awarded the Military Cross for bravery in Sierra Leone in 1997 where he was shot and wounded saving lives during a coup.
After leaving the Army in 2013, Mr Jopp went into business and became the Director and Chief Operating Officer for The Pension Super-Fund between 2018 and 2023. Now a strategic consultant and Board Advisor, Mr Jopp said he is free to devote his time to being the member of Parliament and will “give it everything”.
In 2022 he successfully launched a campaign to ensure more than 1,000 members of the Armed Forces deployed to cover industrial action during the festive period received extra payments. He also campaigned to ensure the Afghan interpreter he worked with was safely relocated in the UK, along with his family.
He was celebrated for leading five hours of BBC’s groundbreaking red button coverage of the King’s Coronation – a hybrid television and radio offering for the blind and partially sighted.
Educated at St Pauls, Mr Jopp is a father of 3. Mr Jopp’s wife helped set up the Military Wives Choir, which became a global phenomenon and the subject of a blockbuster film with Kristin Scott-Thomas playing her in the movie