Labour selected McIntyre for Gloucester in December 2022, giving him nearly two years to campaign against the sitting Conservative MP. He won in 2024 with 36.1 per cent of the vote and a majority of 3,431. The result restored Gloucester's habit of electing an MP from the governing party, but it did not give him a commanding personal mandate.

He initially operated as a broadly loyal Labour backbencher. That changed in May 2026, when he called for Keir Starmer to resign. He subsequently nominated Andy Burnham for the leadership. Burnham appointed him a parliamentary private secretary, McIntyre's first move towards the government front bench.

What he stands for

McIntyre has concentrated on health, criminal justice and Gloucester's public services.

His health politics emphasise prevention. After developing type 2 diabetes, he used the NHS Path to Remission programme and became an advocate for wider access to weight-management treatment. That gives his interest some substance, although personal testimony is not evidence that he has changed national health policy.

On justice, his record is less tidy. He sponsored a technical bill intended to let ministers classify new controlled drugs more quickly. He also criticised his own government's restriction of jury trials, saying that he and the government disagreed on the policy.

That opposition had limits. At the Bill's second reading he defended the government's modelling and voted for the legislation. He challenged the policy in debate without using his vote to try to stop it.

What he actually delivered

McIntyre's most important constituency intervention came during Gloucester City Council's financial crisis. He lobbied ministers before the government approved £15.5 million of exceptional financial support covering three financial years. The agreement allowed the council to set a balanced budget and avoid an immediate section 114 notice or outside commissioners.

Calling this £15.5 million of government funding overstates what was secured. Exceptional support is a capitalisation direction: permission to cover day-to-day spending using asset-sale proceeds or borrowing that must later be repaid. It kept services running but left the council with a recovery plan, property sales and reduced support for some events and community schemes. McIntyre helped obtain the breathing space. He did not repair the council's finances.

He also joined Gloucester businesses in pressing the Department for Transport to retain the half-hourly Gloucester to Bristol train service. The government and West of England Combined Authority subsequently made the enhanced service permanent. McIntyre's letter formed part of that campaign, but the regional authority and Great Western Railway developed the case, while other MPs campaigned for the same trains further down the route.

What he did not deliver

His Controlled Drugs (Procedure for Specification) Bill gained government and cross-party support and reached its Commons report stage. It did not complete its passage or become law. A fresh version was introduced by another Labour MP in July 2026.

The government also allocated £20 million in long-term Pride in Place funding to Matson and Robinswood. This was an allocation under a national programme, not £20 million of completed regeneration, and McIntyre published no evidence that his intervention determined the award.

Capability judgement

McIntyre has shown that he can carry local concerns into Whitehall and contribute to a coalition that protects a transport service or prevents an immediate financial collapse. Those are useful backbench skills.

The council settlement was a stopgap, his principal legislation stalled and his challenge to jury restrictions stopped short of voting against them. His promotion under Burnham followed a timely break with Starmer and support for his successor. The record supports an effective constituency advocate with some political judgement, but not yet a proven legislator or policy-maker.