Matt Vickers

Matthew Alexander Vickers (born 24 September 1983) is a British politician who served as the member of Parliament (MP) for Stockton South from 12 December 2019 to 30 May 2024, and as Deputy Chairman of the Conservative Party since July 2022. In the 2024 general election, he was elected in Stockton West as the only Conservative in the whole of the North East of England.

Early life
Vickers was born in University Hospital of North Tees to local business owners Hilary and Alexander Vickers. He grew up in Stockton-on-Tees and has three brothers. He studied law and business management at Teesside University and previously worked at Woolworths and Home Bargains including in a management role.

Local political career
Vickers stood for election in the Norton West ward on the Stockton-on-Tees Borough Council in 2007 and 2011 losing to Labour Party candidates Ann and Dick Cains and David and Norma Wilburn respectively. In 2015 he stood for election in the Hartburn ward and became a councillor and leader of the Conservative group on the council from May 2015 until April 2021, when he stood down forcing a by-election.

Between 2009 and 2019, he was the constituency agent for Richmond (Yorks). Vickers initially worked with William Hague. Following Hague's retirement, Vickers helped to run Rishi Sunak's successful general election campaigns in 2015 and 2017.

Vickers stood as the Conservative candidate for Cleveland Police and Crime Commissioner in 2016 losing to Barry Coppinger after the second preference votes were counted with a 37.9% vote share.

After being elected as an MP in 2019 he faced criticism due to his ongoing representation as a councillor whilst an elected MP, being labelled as a "part time MP" by other councillors from the region. In response to criticism, Vickers highlighted how he did not claim any expenses and donated all his councillor salary to three local charities, which helped veterans, those suffering with dementia and homelessness in the constituency. At the time of his departure as a councillor, his allowance amounted to a minimum of £9,300 per year. The only confirmed recipient of a donation is The Teesside Dementia Link Services who received a £500 donation from his councillor allowance.

Parliamentary career
He was elected as MP for Stockton South at the 2019 general election with a majority of 5,260. The seat had previously been held by Labour's Paul Williams. From March 2020 to 16 January 2021, Vickers sat on the Committee on the Future Relationship with the European Union.

As of September 2020, Matt Vickers has served as the Chair of the All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on Retail.

On 19 November 2020, Vickers backed the home secretary, Priti Patel, after a Cabinet Office inquiry found evidence that Patel had breached the ministerial code following bullying allegations, publicly supporting Patel: "[Patel] is one of the most hardworking Home Secretaries this country has had."

Vickers, along with 22 other MPs, wrote to Attorney General Suella Braverman in August 2020 requesting that the killing of police officer Andrew Harper case, where the perpetrators were convicted of manslaughter, be referred to the Court of Appeal under the unduly lenient sentence scheme as he supported a life imprisonment.

He has been a member of the Petitions Committee since 1 March 2021.

On 27 September 2021, Vickers wrote a letter to the House of Commons director of catering requesting that the Teesside dish the chicken Parmo be added to the menu. After a successful campaign, the Parmo was added to the menu for a short period of time.

He was a member of the Levelling Up, Housing and Communities Committee from 19 October 2021 to 21 June 2022.

Vickers was a member of the Home Affairs Select Committee and the Justice Select Committee from 15 March to 27 June 2022.

Following a rebellion in which 36 MPs signed Vickers' amendment to the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Act 2022, the Secretary of State for Justice pledged to introduce measures to make assaults on those performing a duty to the public a statutory aggravating factor in the form of Lords Amendment 104. Vickers subsequently hailed this as "a landmark victory for shop workers and retail staff across the country".

In June 2022, during the vote of no confidence in the Conservative Party leadership of Boris Johnson, Vickers publicly supported Johnson.

On 13 June 2022, Vickers was appointed Parliamentary Private Secretary to the Home Office ministerial team, alongside Luke Evans.

In July 2022, Vickers was appointed Deputy Chairman of the Conservative Party.

Vickers led a debate in the House of Commons for tougher measures against off-road bikes and other anti-social behaviour in Stockton in July 2023 and continues to advocate for cooperation between local police and his constituents.

In November 2023, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, Jeremy Hunt extended the 75% retail, hospitality, and leisure business relief rates until April 2025. Hunt publicly thanked Vickers for his tenacious campaigning on this issue in his Autumn Statement address on 22 November 2023.