Western Daily Press (Saturday)
Campaign urges MP to resign for by-election
CAMPAIGNERS are calling for a by-election in Somerset to remove an “ineffective” MP. David Warburton has represented the Somerton and Frome constituency for the Conservative Party since 2015, having achieved the largest constituency swing in England at that year’s General Election.
Mr Warburton was suspended from the party in April following allegations of sexual harassment and cocaine use – which he strongly denies – and has been receiving treatment at a psychiatric hospital since July.
Former Frome town councillor Scott Ward has now started the “Finding David” campaign, demanding a byelection.
He said: “It’s not the intention of this campaign to comment on the current status of Mr Warburton’s mental health; that is an issue for him, his family and any medical professionals involved with his care.
“We are purely focusing on Mr Warburton’s performance as an MP while representing the constituency of Somerton and Frome, and the current allegations made against him – which, if true, fall way below the standard we expect from our MP.
“Residents of the towns and villages that Mr Warburton represents deserve an MP that will be present, contactable, and not willing to be shackled by his party leader.
“While we know that Mr Warburton is currently classified as an independent, he seems eager to rejoin the Conservatives, which would indicate that he is not likely to stand up for his constituents against government policy in the future.”
Mr Ward said his MP’s representation of his constituents had already been “sub-par” before he was admitted to hospital.
He said: “We are calling on Mr Warburton to resign as MP for Somerton and Frome to allow a by-election within the constituency. This will allow voters to choose a new MP who will truly put the people of Somerton and Frome before party politics, and be a true representative within parliament.”
The Liberal Democrats, who held the seat between 1992 and 2015, have already selected local councillor Sarah Dyke as their candidate for any potential by-election.
Following their seismic victory in the Tiverton and Honiton by-election in June, party officials have said they are confident of achieving a similar upset in one of the safest Tory seats in the country.
Since June 21, Mr Warburton has been officially under investigation by the independent parliamentary standards commissioner over alleged breaches of the MPs’ code of conduct.
The Times reported in April that Mr Warburton had asked the Financial Conduct Authority to “look more favourably” on Russian financier Roman Joukovski, who had allegedly provided Mr Warburton with an undeclared loan of around £150,000 for a holiday rental property.
Mr Warburton has consistently denied these allegations, stating at the time that he had “enormous amounts of defence”.
Mr Warburton’s constituency office said his office “continues to function as normal” with regards to casework.
A spokesman said: “Due to confidentiality rules, David is prevented from commenting until the results of the investigation are in the public domain. However, David looks forward to sharing the material facts of the matter with his constituents as soon as he is able.”