Robathan was elected to Hammersmith and Fulham Council in May 1990, defeating the then-Labour Mayor in the Eel Brook Ward. He resigned as a Councillor in late 1991 to fight the 1992 general election, elected as MP for Blaby in 1992 succeeding Nigel Lawson, the former Chancellor of the Exchequer. Blaby had a 37% majority in 1992, but it was considerably reduced by major boundary changes in 1997, creating a rise in Liberal Democrat support within the constituency. Following a public enquiry by the Electoral Commission and submissions from the public including Robathan, the Blaby constituency was reconfigured as South Leicestershire. Robathan served four years on the Defence Select Committee between 1997 and 2001; he was also Chairman of the All-Party Cycling Group, and Vice-Chairman of the All-Party Renewable and Sustainable Energy Group, whilst an MP. Robathan was John Redwood's Parliamentary Private Secretary to Iain Sproat, Minister for Sport, in the Major administration before returning to the backbenches when the Conservatives lost the 1997 general election. He returned to the front-bench as Trade and Industry Spokesman in 2002. In the 2001 Conservative Party leadership election, Robathan was a notable supporter of Michael Portillo. After six months on the backbenches, Robathan was appointed Commons Liaison to the Lords and then a Defence Spokesman in which capacity he fought the 2005 general election. In the 2005 Conservative leadership election, Robathan was one of the very first MPs to declare his support for David Cameron being rewarded with one of only five paid posts as Opposition Deputy Chief Whip. In May 2010, he was appointed Parliamentary Under Secretary of State at the Ministry of Defence with responsibility for Welfare and Veterans. In 2011, he was a member of the Special Select Committee set up to scrutinise the Bill that became the Armed Forces Act 2011. In December 2011, campaigners called for him to be sacked after he compared the medal claims of 66,500 veterans of the Arctic convoys of World War II to the proliferation of honours made by "authoritarian regimes" and "dictators": Some 3000 sailors died on the convoys - which Winston Churchill described as the "worst journey in the world." Portsmouth MPs described his behaviour as "shameful" and "sickening." In October 2012 Robathan was told to calm down by Lindsay Hoyle, the Deputy Speaker, after complaining about noise levels from the public gallery. Soldiers from the "historic" 2nd Battalion Royal Regiment of Fusiliers who face being disbanded were "politely applauding MPs who spoke up on their behalf". A former captain contrasted MoD advice that they went to Afghanistan and Iraq to help democracy with the reality of their own threatened ejection from Parliament.
Expenses
Robathan claimed the maximum second home entitlement of £24,006 in the period 2008–09 though he was not one of the 343 MPs required to repay money by the Legg Report. He was one of 177 MPs listed by The Daily Telegraph who employed family members. The Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority report published two years later, whilst tightening the rules, confirmed that a member may employ one relative subject to general conditions relating to expenses. Robathan's expenses were generally in the bottom half of all MPs. On 24 August 2009, he was quoted in The Times newspaper suggesting that MP's salaries be increased to £110,000. These comments were heavily frowned upon by his colleagues in Parliament and the media. On 4 November 2013, it was reported in The Leicester Mercury newspaper and on BBC Radio Leicester that Robathan had claimed £4,587 expenses to pay for energy bills for his second home.
Personal life
He married Rachael Maunder in December 1991 in Westminster. They have a son and daughter. Rachael has been a Conservative councillor on Westminster City Council since 2010, representing Knightsbridge and Belgravia ward. In 2020, she became Leader of the Council. Robathan speaks French and German, and has been admitted as a Freeman of the City of London.
