- Sunak: Dorries’ Constituents Not Adequately Represented
- Dorries Alleges “Evil Forces” Prevented Peerage
- Calls for Resignation and Potential By-Election
According to the prime minister, Nadine Dorries’ constituents are not adequately represented.
Rishi Sunak told LBC that the people deserved a representative “regardless of where they are.
The former secretary of culture announced her resignation as Mid Bedfordshire’s representative in June, effective immediately.
She later stated that she would not resign until she received more information about why she was denied a peerage on Boris Johnson’s list of resignation honors.
Ms. Dorries, who earns £86,584, has not spoken in the Commons since June 2022.
In his LBC interview, Mr. Sunak detailed what he believed the public had the right to expect from their representatives.
“It’s merely a matter of ensuring that your representative is engaging with you and representing your interests, whether he or she is speaking in Parliament or is physically present in their constituencies holding surgeries and responding to your correspondence.
All members of Congress should be held to the same standard.
When asked if this meant that Ms. Dorries was failing to represent her constituents, Mr. Sunak responded, “Well, at the moment, people are not being adequately represented.”
Ms. Dorries has been asked for her opinion. She previously alleged that “evil forces” prevented her from obtaining a seat in the House of Lords.
She claims Mr. Sunak’s political staff removed her from the former prime minister’s resignation honours. And she wanted all House of Lords nomination correspondence.
Ms. Dorries has stated that she is requesting the information from the House of Lords Appointments Commission, the cabinet secretary – the chief of the civil service – and the Cabinet Office.
She has insisted that her intention to resign remains unchanged, but that “this process is now regrettably necessary.”
She added that her “office continues to operate normally and will continue to serve my constituents.”
“Nowhere to be found.”
In response to Mr. Sunak’s remarks, Liberal Democrat deputy leader Daisy Cooper MP stated, “When your prime minister says you’re not doing your job effectively, it’s time to step down.
“The residents of Mid Bedfordshire feel utterly disregarded by Nadine Dorries.
“Families are facing soaring bills and a near impossibility of obtaining a GP appointment, while this government is mired in corruption and the Conservative representative is nowhere to be found.”
Downing Street emphasized the importance of “certainty” for Ms. Dorries’ constituents. In the absence of a general election, Mr. Sunak cannot compel her to resign from Parliament, but he could suspend her from the Conservative Party.
She won Mid Bedfordshire with 24,664 votes in the 2019 general election, but Labour and the Liberal Democrats want it. A by-election can only be called upon the formal resignation of an MP.
If Ms Dorries resigns, a by-election might be held in October because Congress is in recess until September.
The Flitwick Town Council in her electorate demanded Ms. Dorries’ resignation last Monday, citing her TalkTV presenting duties.
In addition, the council members noted that she had not maintained a constituency office “for some time.”
Alistair Strathern, the Labour candidate for Mid Bedfordshire, stated that residents are “tired of being taken for granted. They want proper representation and a local representative who puts them first.”
In a by-election, Emma Holland-Lindsay will run for the Liberal Democrats and Festus Akinbusoye for the Conservatives.
Ms. Dorries has also authored a book titled The Plot: The Political Assassination Of Boris Johnson. Which will be published days before the Conservative Party’s October conference.
