Kirsty O’Connor/PA
A parody account of prime minister Rishi Sunak decided to throw in the towel after it was announced that the Tories had put forward the partner of disgraced MP Peter Bone to run in his vacated seat of Wellingborough in the upcoming by-election.
Bone was ousted from the Commons in December with a by-election triggered after more than 10 per cent of constituents in his seat voted to recall him.
The recall petition was sparked when the Tory MP was handed a six-week suspension from the House of Commons after an inquiry found he had subjected a staff member to bullying and sexual misconduct.
Conservative Party chairman Richard Holden announced on Sunday that Helen Harrison, a councillor on North Northamptonshire Council, had been picked to fight the election for the party.
It has been widely reported that Mr Bone and Ms Harrison, who contested the Bolsover seat in 2017 for the Conservatives, are dating.
Ms Harrison has posted a number of photos on social media of them out canvassing together, including since the Tory whip was suspended from Mr Bone following the publication of an inquiry by Parliament’s behaviour watchdog into his conduct.
According to a report in The Times in October, Mr Bone, a former minister, had been threatening to stand as an independent candidate in the by-election, potentially splitting the Tory vote, if Ms Harrison was not selected as the party’s candidate.
Labour’s Jonathan Ashworth, the shadow paymaster general, said: “Rishi Sunak caving to Peter Bone’s demand to select his partner so he doesn’t run as an independent shows just how weak the Prime Minister is.
“Rishi Sunak is too weak to lead his own party, let alone the country.
“The people of Wellingborough deserve the best possible candidate to represent them, not the product of a quick political fix.
“Only Labour can deliver the change the voters want to see and give Britain its future back.”
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