In a blow to Rishi Sunak, Sir Alok Sharma announced he will not stand for re-election in his seat of Reading West & Mid Berkshire. Writing on Twitter/X, he claimed “this was not an easy decision“. The former COP26 president’s announcement comes just a few days after he made a series of Tweets blasting Sunak’s Net Zero rollback, writing:
“I’m concerned about fracturing of UK political consensus on climate action. Chopping and changing policies creates uncertainty for businesses and the public.” No prizes for guessing why he’s off…
I have this evening informed my local Conservative Association that I have decided not to stand at the next general election and therefore do not seek to be adopted as the Conservative candidate for the revised seat of Reading West & Mid Berkshire. This has not been an easy decision for me.It has been the honour of my life to serve as the MP for a constituency in the town where I grew up and a privilege to serve in Government and represent the UK on the international stage.
My grateful thanks to all the constituents, local organisations, charities and businesses I have had the pleasure of working with, since being selected as the parliamentary candidate in 2006, as we have campaigned together on a whole range of issues to make our local area a better place to live and work.
I will continue to support my Conservative colleagues and serve my constituents diligently for the remainder of my time as an MP, as well as champion in Parliament the causes I care deeply about, especially climate action.
Pointed last line…
