During 1991, Clifton-Brown was selected as the candidate for the then Conservative
parliamentary constituency of
Cirencester and Tewkesbury, following the retirement of the former
Cabinet minister
Nicholas Ridley. He won the seat at the
1992 general election with 55.6% of the vote and a majority of 16,058, both slightly higher than at the
1987 general election. Clfiton-Brown made his
maiden speech on 12 June 1992. When newly elected Clifton-Brown became a member of the
Environment Select Committee, where he remained until 1995. He was then appointed as the
Parliamentary private secretary to
Douglas Hogg, the
Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food. The constituency of Cirencester and Tewkesbury was abolished, but Clifton-Brown contested and was elected for the newly drawn constituency of
Cotswold at the
1997 general election. He won with 46.4% of the vote, a decrease of 8% from 1992, and a majority of 11,965, down from 16,058. He was again re-elected at the
2001 general election with an increased vote share of 50.3% and an increased majority of 11,983. In 2002, after
Iain Duncan Smith became leader of the Conservative party, Clifton-Brown became the
Shadow Minister for Local and Devolved Government Affairs. Clifton-Brown was re-elected at the
2005 general election with a decreased vote share of 49.3% and a decreased majority of 9,688. He returned to
Westminster as assistant Chief Conservative
Whip. On the accession of
David Cameron as Leader of the Conservative Party, he was appointed the
Shadow Minister for Foreign Affairs, Trade and Investment. The Cotswolds Conservative Party Association said that Clifton-Brown had acted within the rules. Following the formation of the subsequent
coalition government, he returned as a
backbencher, making overseas visits in his role as Chairman of the Conservative Party's International Office. At this time he became the Parliamentary Chairman of the Conservative Friends of the Chinese. In a 2015 interview with
CNN, Clifton-Brown stated that his family has been doing business in China since the 1920s. Clifton-Brown has remained engaged with the Chinese authorities. Clifton-Brown was again re-elected at the
2015 general election with an increased vote share of 56.5% and an increased majority of 21,477. He was again re-elected at the snap
2017 general election with an increased vote share of 60.1% and an increased majority of 25,499. In the
2018 New Year Honours, he was appointed a
Knight Bachelor for political and public service. In 2019, Clifton-Brown was asked to leave the
Conservative Party Conference being held in
Manchester, following a dispute with security staff who prevented him from entering a meeting room with a guest who did not have a relevant identification pass. He later apologised and described the incident as a "minor verbal misunderstanding". He was again re-elected at the
2019 general election, with a decreased vote share of 58% and a decreased majority of 20,214. He has previously been voted as the worst MP in parliament in a survey of constituents ranking MPs on categories such as attendance and helping constituents. Due to the
2023 review of Westminster constituencies, Clifton-Brown's constituency of
The Cotswolds was abolished, and replaced with
North Cotswolds. At the
2024 general election, Clifton-Brown was elected to Parliament as MP for North Cotswolds with 34.7% of the vote and a majority of 3,357. Following the general election, he ran against
Bob Blackman to become chairman of the
1922 Committee, of which he had previously been treasurer; he lost by 28 votes. On 11 September 2024, Clifton-Brown was elected Chair of the
Public Accounts Committee. == Personal life ==