Jake Richards (politician)
Jake Richards | |
|---|---|
Official portrait, 2024 | |
| Parliamentary under-secretary of state at the Ministry of Justice | |
| Assumed office 7 September 2025 | |
| Prime Minister | Keir Starmer |
| Member of Parliament for Rother Valley | |
| Assumed office 4 July 2024 | |
| Preceded by | Alexander Stafford |
| Majority | 998 (2.4%) |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Jacob Ben Richards 5 July 1989 |
| Party | Labour |
| Parent | Steve Richards |
| Education | Highgate School (Senior School) Woodhouse College (Sixth Form) |
| Alma mater | Somerville College, Oxford City, University of London |
Jacob Ben Richards (born 5 July 1989) [1] is a British Labour Party politician who has served as Member of Parliament for Rother Valley since 2024.[2][3] He has been a parliamentary under-secretary of state at the Ministry of Justice since September 2025.
Early life and education
Jacob Ben Richards[4] was born on 5 July 1989, the son of journalist and broadcaster Steve Richards.[5] He was educated at Highgate School, a private fee-paying school in North London, and then attended Woodhouse College. He read History at Somerville College, Oxford.[6]
Following his undergraduate studies, he completed the Bar Professional Training Course (BPTC) at City, University of London.[7] He was called to the bar in 2017.[8] He worked as a barrister at Deka Chambers in London;[9] his colleague Catherine Atkinson was also elected as a Labour MP at the 2024 general election.[10]
Parliamentary career
Richards was selected as the Labour candidate for Rother Valley after the previous candidate, Dominic Beck, stood down in December 2022 following concerns over his position on Rotherham Council during the Rotherham child sexual exploitation scandal.[11]
Richards is a co-sponsor of Kim Leadbeater's Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill on assisted suicide.[12] He has served as a member of the Home Affairs Select Committee since October 2024.
In December 2025, as Under-Secretary of State at the Ministry of Justice, Richards refused Jeremy Corbyn's request during Justice Questions that he meet with the representatives of Palestine Action hunger strikers being held on remand, to laughter from some MPs.[13][14]
Personal life
Richards is married to the former Sky News political correspondent Liz Bates, with whom he has a daughter.[15] In September 2025, Bates was appointed as Special Advisor to Steve Reed, Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government.[16] Richards' sister was a Special Advisor (SpAd) to Home Secretary Yvette Cooper, and in 2025 was promoted to Political Director to the Prime Minister.[17]
Richards's brother-in-law is Gregor Poynton, Labour MP for Livingston since 2024.[18]
Recent reports from November 2025 indicate that Labour Chief Whip Jonathan Reynolds has told some MPs he is unhappy in his, role amid growing discontent over the appointment of close family members of senior No 10 figures to whip positions, a reshuffle that included Richards and Poynton to the Whip's Office.[19]
References
- ^ "Members Sworn". Parliamentary Debates (Hansard). Vol. 752. Parliament of the United Kingdom: House of Commons. 10 July 2024.
- ^ "Rother Valley – General election results 2024". BBC News. Retrieved 6 July 2024.
- ^ "County united as Red Wall seats return to Labour". BBC News. 5 July 2024. Retrieved 6 July 2024.
- ^ "Official document showing his full legal name". Retrieved 10 August 2024.
- ^ "The Starmtroopers: how Labour's centrists took back control". Spectator. 29 April 2023. Retrieved 6 July 2024.
- ^ "Tweet confirming History degree from Somerville College". Retrieved 6 July 2024.
- ^ "Tweet confirming Bar Professional Training Course at City University London". Retrieved 6 July 2024.
- ^ "Richards, Jake, MP (Lab) Rother Valley, since 2024". Who's Who 2025. Oxford University Press. 1 December 2024. Retrieved 6 January 2025.
- ^ "Jake Richards – Deka Chambers – Barristers Chambers". Deka Chambers. Retrieved 25 September 2024.
- ^ Williams, Emma (11 July 2024). "Catherine Atkinson and Jake Richards successful in General Election – Deka Chambers – Barristers Chambers". Deka Chambers. Retrieved 25 September 2024.
- ^ Neame, Katie (23 December 2022). "Dominic Beck stands down as Labour candidate for Rother Valley". LabourList. Retrieved 26 November 2024.
- ^ "Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill" (PDF). UK Parliament. Retrieved 26 November 2024.
- ^ Siddique, Haroon (16 December 2025). "Palestine Action-linked hunger strikers 'may die without Lammy's intervention'". The Guardian.
- ^ "MPS laugh after minister rejects meeting Palestine Action hunger strikers' families". 16 December 2025.
- ^ "Britain's political power couples — 2023 ranking". Politico. 14 February 2023. Retrieved 6 July 2024.
- ^ "PolicyMogul - Champions of public affairs".
- ^ "PolicyMogul - Champions of public affairs".
- ^ "Family dynasties running Labour revealed in new 'power couple' list". The National. 14 February 2023. Retrieved 19 March 2025.
- ^ "Starmer's Labour Party enforcers in disarray just days before crunch Budget". 21 November 2025.