Career
On leaving school, Lopresti worked in his family ice cream business for over ten years. After 1997, he worked as an estate agent and mortgage broker before working for the Conservative Party as a Regional Development Officer and in the Conservative Party Treasurer’s Department. He has also served in the Territorial Army in the 266 Battery, Royal Artillery as a gunner, serving with the 29 Commando for a year, which culminated in a 5-month tour in Afghanistan.
From 2011 to 2013, Lopresti served as a trooper in the Royal Gloucestershire Hussars, an army reserve cavalry unit
Prior to that, Lopresti was a gunner with 266 Commando Battery, which is based in Whiteladies Road. During that time, Lopresti served, as a mobilised reservist, with 29 Commando Research Associate for a year and was deployed in Helmand Province, in Afghanistan, on Operation Herrick 9 for 5 months over Christmas and New Year 2008/9.
Whilst in Afghanistan, Lopresti ran the Camp Bastion Half Marathon, for Help the Heroes, on New Years Day 2009. Lopresti previously represented the Stockwood Ward on Bristol City Council from 1999 to 2007.
He also stood unsuccessfully for the Bristol East constituency in 2001, and for the South West at the European Parliament elections in 2004.
He also served on the Northern Ireland Affairs Committee
In 2012 Lopresti was named by Conservative Home as one of a minority of loyal Conservative backbench MPs not to have voted against the government in any significant rebellions. In the 2015 United Kingdom general election, he retained his seat with an increased majority of almost 10,000.