May: why it was right decision to step back
Departing MP reflects on career as parties gear up for General Election push
Theresa May has said she didn’t think she would be able to serve the people of Maidenhead ‘in the way that I think they deserve’ as she discussed her decision to stand down as an MP at the next election.
Last week’s front page story on the former Prime Minister’s decision not to stand in the next General Election made national headlines – prompting speculation about what it means for Rishi Sunak’s Conservatives and the race to become the town’s next MP.
In a wide-ranging interview with Advertiser reporter Anaka Nair this week, Mrs May said it was ‘right to step back’ as her commitments to tackling modern slavery and human trafficking take more of her time.
Her decision means she is the 60th Conservative MP to confirm they will not be standing at the next election, and with the Tories also lagging behind in the national opinion polls, she was questioned on her party’s chances as voters prepare to go to the polls this year.
Mrs May said she believes the Conservatives will return to power and issued a warning to Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer that a commanding lead in the polls does not necessarily translate to a majority – as she experienced in the 2017 election.
The long-standing MP’s departure will mean Maidenhead will have a new MP for the first time in 27 years
– and opposition parties have said they believe their chances have been boosted.
The local Conservative association must now select a new candidate (Mrs May had previously been selected to stand again), and the Liberal Democrats believe they are the ‘clear challenger’ for the seat.
Candidate Josh Reynolds said Mrs May stood down at a time when people are ‘very unhappy’ with the Conservatives, and pointed to the Lib Dems’ success in the local elections.
Labour, meanwhile, believes it is in a ‘two-party race’ with the Tories for the seat.
Mrs May discussed some of the key issues the town’s next MP will need to address, and her belief that the General Election will ultimately see local voters plump for the party they want to see in government – rather than the individuals standing.
Maidenhead will have a new MP after the next General Election following the decision by Theresa May to stand down. In an exclusive interview with Advertiser reporter Anaka Nair, the former Prime Minister discusses the upcoming election and the challenges which lie ahead for her successor.
Theresa May has outlined the issues facing her successor as the race to become Maidenhead’s next MP hots up.
The Maidenhead MP is the first and only elected Member of Parliament for the constituency since it was created in 1997 – but opponents have said the departure of a respected and established MP will mean voters will turn elsewhere.
But Mrs May said she does not believe this is the case.
“The reality is, when it comes to a General Election, it is about the party and not so much about the individual, however much we, as individual MPs would like to think that we are the difference,” she said.
Discussing her long stint as Maidenhead’s MP, and her decision to stand down, she said: “I hope it’s because I’ve been willing to give the time and effort to the constituency.
“You can’t always get the result that people want but I think the important thing is they want to see their MP working for them.
“It’s because I don’t think I will be able to give the time to do that in the future in the way that I have in the past that has led to my decision.
“It really is about how I think the job should be done. If you can’t do it in the way that I think it should be done then I think it was right to step back.”
The Liberal Democrats ousted the ruling Conservatives from the Royal Borough council in 2023 after 16 years, and when asked how that bodes for her successor, she said: “I think the Maidenhead electorate is sophisticated – it knows the difference between a local government election and a national election and I think for most people when they go to vote for the General Election they’ll be focusing on thinking, which party do they want to see in government – Conservative or Labour.”
She added: “I have every confidence that a Conservative MP will be re-elected in the Maidenhead constituency.
“In terms of the election, I was elected in 1997 when the Conservatives were not controlling the Royal Borough.
“In terms of looking ahead, I would hope to see that the Liberal Democrat council was willing to work with a Conservative Member of Parliament.
“I’m afraid I’ve seen less willingness to work with me since the Liberal Democrats took over the Royal Borough but it’s important because we all want what is good for Maidenhead.”
Talking about the transformation of Maidenhead and what issues are important to voters, she said: “I think it’s been difficult. When I first was selected to fight for the seat, people were talking about Maidenhead town centre and we’re still talking about Maidenhead town centre.”
She spoke highly of recent developments in the town centre, including the opening of the waterways near Chapel Arches
“[It] has taken a lot of years of hard work by volunteers, primarily by volunteers, to bring that together. But there’s still a lot of work to be done on the town centre and all the building work going on at the moment, makes it quite difficult for people.”
She also said Maidenhead Golf Course remains a ‘difficult issue for Maidenhead’.
“The reality is that we need to build more homes, particularly young people are finding it harder now to get a home until they’re older than they would have been in the past.
“If the development goes ahead on the golf course I think you need to have one that’s sympathetic.
“I think what’s important is that we see particularly some of the ancient woodland that’s on the golf course being protected.
“The issue around the golf course site is, of course, it’s sustainable, in that it’s close to the town centre and close to train services.
“If you’re going to build the homes, I often say to people, ‘Where else would you want to put them?’ because I think those homes need to be built.
“We need to be building homes. I don’t like the size of the flat developments in Maidenhead.
I’ve said to the council, I don’t think they should be building as many flats, and I don’t think the flat developments should be as high as they are but that’s ultimately the council’s decision.
“The rest of the development, looking around, I think we have to be very careful about maintaining as far as possible the green spaces and the greenbelt.”
W See p5 for reaction from other political parties and their hopes for the next election.