Brendan O'Hara, MP for Argyll, Bute and South Lochaber
Brendan O'Hara has been an MP since 2015. Currently: Shadow SNP Spokesperson (Cabinet Office); Shadow SNP Spokesperson (Culture, Media and Sport); Shadow SNP Spokesperson (Middle East).
Roles and committees
Posts held in government or opposition, and committee seats, as Parliament records them.
In opposition
| Post | When | |
|---|---|---|
| Shadow SNP Spokesperson (Cabinet Office) (Opposition Department) | 2024 to now | Now |
| Shadow SNP Spokesperson (Culture, Media and Sport) (Opposition Department) | 2024 to now | Now |
| Shadow SNP Spokesperson (Middle East) (Opposition Department) | 2024 to now | Now |
| Shadow SNP Spokesperson (Foreign Affairs) (Opposition Department) | 2023 to 2024 | |
| SNP Chief Whip (Opposition Department) | 2023 | |
| Shadow SNP Spokesperson (International Development) (Opposition Department) | 2022 to 2023 | |
| Shadow SNP Deputy Spokesperson (Cabinet Office) (Opposition Department) | 2021 to 2023 | |
| Shadow SNP Spokesperson (International Human Rights and Conflict Resolution) (Opposition Department) | 2020 to 2023 |
Show the other 3
| Post | When | |
|---|---|---|
| Shadow SNP Spokesperson (Inclusive Society) (Opposition Department) | 2018 to 2020 | |
| Shadow SNP Spokesperson (Culture and Media) (Opposition Department) | 2017 to 2018 | |
| Shadow SNP Westminster Group Leader (Defence) (Opposition Department) | 2015 to 2017 |
Committees
| Post | When | |
|---|---|---|
| Foreign Affairs Sub-Committee on the Overseas Territories | 2023 to 2024 | |
| Foreign Affairs Committee | 2023 to 2024 | |
| Retained EU Law (Revocation and Reform Bill) | 2022 | |
| Elections Bill | 2021 | |
| DCMS Sub-Committee on Disinformation | 2019 | |
| Digital, Culture, Media and Sport Committee | 2017 to 2019 |
Source: UK Parliament Members API · Parliament’s own page
Declared interests
MPs must publish certain paid work, gifts, donations and other interests. This is a record of what they declared, not a suggestion that anything is wrong.
Brendan O'Hara has 7 interests currently registered.
| Type | What was registered | Registered |
|---|---|---|
| Visits outside the UK | International visit to Germany between 03 June 2026 and 05 June 2026 | 22 Jun 2026 |
| Gifts, benefits and hospitality from UK sources | Enersoft International Limited - £900.00 | 9 Feb 2026 |
| Visits outside the UK | International visit to Thailand between 30 November 2025 and 06 December 2025 | 8 Jan 2026 |
| Gifts, benefits and hospitality from UK sources | Enersoft International Ltd - £625.00 | 8 Jan 2026 |
| Miscellaneous | A Director of the Westminster Foundation for Democracy. This is an unpaid role. | 19 May 2021 |
| Family members employed | Catherine O'Hara employed | 19 Jan 2016 |
| Shareholdings | Shares in Oh! Television (not trading) | 11 Jan 2016 |
Source: Register of Members’ Financial Interests · Parliament’s own page
Questions
MPs can ask ministers questions in writing. The questions show what an MP is working on, which votes cannot.
Brendan O'Hara asked 52 written questions in the last 12 months.
Who they asked
Latest questions
Source: Written Questions API · Updated 4 Oct 2026
Expenses
MPs claim back money for running an office and working in two places. An independent body, IPSA, publishes every claim. This is what was paid in 2025-26.
80 claims. For comparison, across the 657 MPs in IPSA’s file the middle MP was paid £18,469 and the average was £19,699.
Source: IPSA, individual business costs data · About this data
Election result and area
Brendan O'Hara represents Argyll, Bute and South Lochaber. Here is who won there at the last general election, and a few numbers about the area.
Scottish National Party
votes ahead of second place
of people who could vote did
Brendan O'Hara won with 35% of the votes, and Amanda Hampsey (Conservative) came second with 21%.
Votes for each party
Every candidate
| Candidate | Party | Votes | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| Brendan O'Hara | Scottish National Party | 15,582 | 34.7% |
| Amanda Hampsey | Conservative | 9,350 | 20.8% |
| Hamish Maxwell | Labour | 8,585 | 19.1% |
| Alan Reid | Liberal Democrat | 7,359 | 16.4% |
| Melanie Hurst | Reform UK | 3,045 | 6.8% |
| Tommy MacPherson | Independent | 941 | 2.1% |
2024 General Election, on today’s boundaries. Source: House of Commons Library via the Members API.
Your area at a glance
Median gross weekly pay, 2025. Source: ONS, Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings.
Share of people aged 16 to 64, August 2026. Source: ONS and DWP claimant count.
How they vote
In the last 12 months Brendan O'Hara took part in 72 Commons votes.
More detail on how they vote
Brendan O'Hara voted the same way as their party in 72 of the 72 votes where parties gave instructions (100%), and went the other way in 0.
What does this mean?
Parties tell their MPs how to vote. Most MPs usually follow that. A high or low count says nothing on its own about whether an MP is good or bad, and we do not rank MPs by it. We only count votes where parties gave instructions, not free votes. How we count it
Recent votes
| Date | Vote | They voted | Compared with party |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2 Sep | Voting and elections: the final vote | For | Same as party |
| 2 Sep | Voting and elections: a proposed change | For | Same as party |
| 2 Sep | Voting and elections: a proposed change | Against | Same as party |
| 2 Sep | Voting and elections: a proposed change | Against | Same as party |
| 14 Jul | Accountability of public officials: a proposed change | Against | Same as party |
| 14 Jul | Accountability of public officials: a proposed change | Against | Same as party |
See every vote on Parliament’s site
Has this changed over time?
View data table
| Month | This MP | Party average |
|---|---|---|
| Oct 25 | 100% | 100% |
| Nov 25 | 100% | 100% |
| Dec 25 | 100% | 100% |
| Jan 26 | 100% | 100% |
| Feb 26 | 100% | 100% |
| Mar 26 | 100% | 100% |
| Apr 26 | 100% | 100% |
| May 26 | 100% | 100% |
| Jul 26 | 100% | 100% |
| Sep 26 | 100% | 100% |
Source: Commons Votes API
This page states what the record shows. It does not say why an MP voted as they did. How we calculate this