Born in London, the son of Billionaire businessman and financier Sir James Goldsmith, he was educated at Eton College and the Cambridge Centre for Sixth-form Studies. In 1998, his uncle Edward Goldsmith made him Editor of The Ecologist, a position he retained until 2007. Goldsmith was appointed Deputy Chairman of the Conservative Quality of Life Policy Group in 2005, co-authoring its report published in 2007. Goldsmith was placed on the Conservative "A-List" of potential candidates in 2006, and then in March 2007, he was selected through an open primary to contest the constituency of Richmond Park against the incumbent Liberal Democrat MP, Susan Kramer. At the 2010 general election, he was elected to Parliament winning the seat with a majority of 4,091 votes.