Sir Robert Goodwill (born 31 December 1956) is a British Conservative Party politician and farmer who served as a Member of Parliament (MP) for Scarborough and Whitby from 2005 to 2024.

[3] Goodwill was born in Terrington, North Riding of Yorkshire, and was privately educated at the Quaker Bootham School[4] in York and the University of Newcastle upon Tyne where he received a Bachelor of Science degree in agriculture in 1979.

[5] Goodwill is a member of the Conservative Party and contested his first constituency, Redcar, at the 1992 general election, where he finished second, 11,577 votes behind the sitting Labour MP, Mo Mowlam.

He again attempted to enter the House of Commons at the 1997 general election when he was selected for the marginally held Conservative seat of North West Leicestershire following the deselection[citation needed] of the sitting MP David Ashby.

[8] In 2003, Goodwill criticised the Council of the European Union's proposal to ban smoky bacon flavoured crisps, calling it "over the top" and "disproportionate to the possible risks.

[10] In the 2005 general election, Goodwill stood in the constituency of Scarborough and Whitby, winning the seat from Labour incumbent Lawrie Quinn by 1,245 votes.

In August 2005, Goodwill co-authored a letter to The Spectator with five other newly elected Conservative MPs, criticising the "decadent" nature of British society.

In January 2016, the Labour Party unsuccessfully proposed an amendment in Parliament that would have required private landlords to make their homes "fit for human habitation.".

He remained on these two committees until he rejoined the government in March 2019, when he became Minister of State for Agriculture, Fisheries, & Food, replacing George Eustice who had resigned over Brexit.

[30] In 2013, following on from a review of capital gains made by MPs from their tax-payer funded second homes, the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority ordered Goodwill to repay £4,963.39.

[citation needed] He stepped in to save the Scarborough Pleasure Ship, Coronia, in January 2011 so that the historic Dunkirk-veteran vessel can continue to be based in the harbour there.