Mark Simmonds was born in 1964. He is married to Lizbeth, and has three children; Oriana, Isabella and Oliver.

Mark was selected for Boston and Skegness from an extensive list of applicants. His victory in 2001 was repeated in 2005 with a massively increased majority and one of the largest swings to a Conservative in the country.

He was made Parliamentary Private Secretary to the Rt Hon Michael Ancram MP QC, the Shadow Foreign Secretary. Within 30 months of being elected he was promoted to the front bench as a Shadow Minister for Education. This position enabled him to capitalise on his special interest in local and national educational issues. He was also a member of the Education and Skills Select Committee and the Environmental Audit Select Committee.
In September 2004 Mark was appointed Shadow Foreign Office Minister. His work focused on international affairs in the Middle East, Africa, Central and South East Asia, and South America.
After his re-election in May 2005 Mark was made Shadow Minister for International Development, where his role focused on the important issues of aid, trade and debt.
In July 2007 Mark Simmonds was promoted to Shadow Minister for Health, where his responsibilities include healthcare commissioning, cancer, NHS information and the relationship with NICE.
Mark’s political interests include foreign affairs, education, agriculture, health and environmental issues.