He was the Member of Parliament (MP) for South East Cornwall from 1997 until he stood down at the 2010 general election.

[2] He was selected to contest the constituency of Cornwall South East at the 1997 general election, when the sitting Conservative MP Robert Hicks was retiring.

In Parliament, Breed was appointed a Liberal Democrat spokesman on Trade and Industry by Paddy Ashdown in 1997.

Breed was dropped from the Liberal Democrat Shadow Cabinet following the 2001 general election, but was appointed a spokesman on the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, before moving to speak on Defence in 2002.

[3] He returned to be a spokesman on the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs following the 2005 General Election.