During his time working at "The Times", he contributed to the 2010 "The Times Guide to the House of Commons", and his picture of the 2017 Westminster attack was used on the front cover of the newspaper. His reaction to Boris Johnson ruling himself out in the 2016 Conservative Party leadership election led to Coates featuring in the "Daily Mirror" and other outlets. Coates was said to be "pivotal to The Times' parliamentary coverage" in a 2019 report.