[2] He worked for the National Bank of New Zealand in Dunedin and Wellington until 1987 when he embarked on a rugby sojourn to Scotland and England, playing for Dunfermline 1987/88 and Broughton Park in Manchester 1988/89.

[2] While working for Mercy Hospital in 2005, he earned a Master of Health Administration degree at the University of New South Wales in Australia.

[7] Woodhouse was selected as National's Dunedin North candidate in 2008, succeeding Katherine Rich who had been a list MP for 9 years but was retiring.

[7][10][11] In a ministerial reshuffle in January 2013, Woodhouse was made a minister outside cabinet and was given the Immigration, Veteran's Affairs and associate transport portfolios.

Labour leader Andrew Little stated the new classifications were "overly complicated, ill-thought-out and rushed through to appease National Party backers, putting the lives of New Zealanders at risk".

He will be forever ridiculed as the Minister who made killer worm farms safer but failed to protect people working in some of New Zealand's most dangerous industries".

[18][19] In late August 2018, Woodhouse objected to United States whistleblower Chelsea Manning's proposed tour of New Zealand in early September 2018, arguing that she should be banned due to her lack of remorse over her role in leaking sensitive US military documents to WikiLeaks.

In response, the Ministry of Health confirmed that the two infected travellers had "five minutes" of limited contact with two friends during their journey.

[23] On 18 June, Woodhouse alleged that a homeless man had bluffed his way into a two-week stay in a five-star hotel being used as a COVID-19 isolation facility by pretending to have newly returned from overseas.

"[25] On 11 August, Radio New Zealand (RNZ) reported that official investigations had concluded that a man with no fixed abode had spent time in managed isolation, but had done so after returning from Australia, and hence had been present legitimately.

[26] On 4 July 2020, The Spinoff reported that Woodhouse had posed with a toilet seat with a picture of Labour Dunedin South electorate Clare Curran during the National Party's April 2012 Mainland Regional conference.

The toilet seat was apparently a trophy presented to a debating team headed by former broadcaster and Waitaki District councillor Jim Hopkins.

[30][31] Woodhouse was criticised by Health Minister Chris Hipkins, who alleged that he had been "sitting on information" related to the recent COVID-19 leak.

[33][34] During the 2020 New Zealand general election held on 17 October, Woodhouse contested the new Dunedin electorate but was defeated again by David Clark, by a final margin of 15,521 votes.

[51] Despite his opposition to the Contraception, Sterilisation, and Abortion (Safe Areas) Amendment Act 2022 on free speech grounds, Woodhouse voted in favour of the bill during its first Parliamentary reading because the public needed to have their say on the proposed legislation at the select committee stage.