Sunak is hunkering down for a gruelling day as the by-election for Chris Pincher’s Tamworth seat is confirmed for 19th October. Nadine Dorries’ Mid-Bedfordshire was already confirmed for the same day…
Majorities of 19,634 and 24,664 respectively are at threat and could disappear within hours of each other. Pain shared is pain halved?
Sitting Tory MP Eddie Hughes has ruled out standing as the Conservative candidate in the upcoming Tamworth by-election, despite being selected to fight for the seat at the next General Election. He’s currently the MP for Walsall North, which is being abolished under boundary changes. Pincher’s early resignation this morning has completely scuppered his plans…
He confirmed in a statement on Facebook this afternoon:
“I respect the MP for Tamworth’s decision to resign today and I understand there will now be a by-election. However, as the sitting Member of Parliament for Walsall North I have a commitment to my constituents until the next General Election. I look forward to continuing to represent the great people of Bloxwich, Willenhall and Walsall North.”
Hughes was stuck between a rock and a hard place. You might even say he was caught in something of a Pincher movement. Jumping to Tamworth now would have meant another by-election in Walsall North. As Michael Crick points out, that could have made Hughes the man responsible for losing his party two by-elections potentially on the same day. The race is now on to find a new candidate for Tamworth. Guido hears CCHQ are scrambling around desperately…
UPDATE: Hughes tells Guido he’s focusing on winning Tamworth for the Tories for now, and hasn’t decided what’ll do after that. There are still a few other seats up for grabs…
Chris Pincher has written to Jeremy Hunt to formally resign as the MP for Tamworth. It follows the Independent Expert Panel throwing out Pincher’s suspension appeal, which meant he was already set for an 8-week exclusion that would have guaranteed a recall petition anyway. He told GB News’s Christopher Hope:
“I have said already that I will not stand at the next General Election. However, following the Independent Expert Panel’s decision I wanted to talk to my office team and family. I do not want my constituents to be put to further uncertainty, and so in consequence I have made arrangements to resign and leave the Commons. Tamworth is a wonderful place and it has been an honour to represent its people. I shall make no further comment at this time.”
Tamworth is, in theory, a Conservative safe seat. UK Polling Report still projects a Tory win, although Labour will fight tooth-and-nail…
The Independent Expert Panel has rejected Christ Pincher’s appeal over his eight-week Commons suspension, paving the way for a recall petition in his Tamworth constituency. And almost certainly another by-election…
The Panel didn’t hold back:
“We consider that the appellant’s arguments are misconceived or erroneous. The sanction is far from being arbitrary or disproportionate. The Committee’s recommended sanction is upheld.”
Read the full report below:
A year has passed since Chris Pincher’s Carlton Club misconduct kicked off a government crisis and the Standards Committee has just now published a report into the situation. The committee recommends Pincher be given an eight week Commons suspension which, if approved, would be enough to trigger a recall petition and then a by-election in his Tamworth seat. Although it looks solid blue on paper, Labour would definitely fancy their chances…
Read the report in full below:
This morning, Parliament’s standards watchdog will publish a report into the groping allegations into Chris Pincher, almost a year to the day since his Carlton Club exploits kicked off a full-blown government crisis. One person who probably won’t be thumbing through the report with urgency is, it turns out, Boris Johnson…
Appearing on the One Decision podcast with Julia Macfarlane, a bored-looking Boris pretended to fall asleep as he was quizzed about the Pincher and Paterson scandals that brought him down. Asked if he would have done anything differently, he snored.
After his brief mid-podcast nap, he added:
“Politics is pretty tough in this country, and that’s good. But here’s the plus side… if I look at what we achieved it was very considerable.”
Maybe he meant to answer with “get more sleep”…
