Sproat first contested
Rutherglen in
a by-election in May 1964, and again in
the general election later that year, but was unsuccessful in both campaigns. At the
1970 general election, he stood in the marginal
Scottish constituency of
Aberdeen South, and ousted the sitting
Labour MP,
Donald Dewar. He was re-elected there at three further elections, until the
1983 general election when he moved to contest
Roxburgh and Berwickshire believing that this was a 'safer' seat. However, Aberdeen South was held by the Conservatives, while Roxburgh and Berwickshire fell to the
Liberal candidate
Archy Kirkwood. Sproat returned to Parliament nine years later, moving to
England and succeeding Sir
Julian Ridsdale as MP for
Harwich in the
1992 general election. He served as
parliamentary secretary and then
minister of state in the
Department for National Heritage, where had responsibility for film, and then
Minister for Sport in
John Major's government from 1993 to 1997, but at the
1997 general election he was defeated by the Labour candidate
Ivan Henderson. Sproat stood again in Harwich at the
2001 election, but Henderson was returned with an increased majority. Sproat did not contest the
2005 general election; instead
Douglas Carswell regained the seat for the Conservatives. ==Outside Parliament==