General Election: "There's still more to do" says Conservative North Bedfordshire candidate

The Conservative candidate for North Bedfordshire said: “It’s been a privilege to have been the MP [North East Bedfordshire] for the last five years.

“I think I have tried to be accessible to people in quite difficult times.

“People like to know they have a connection to their MP, so I’ve I held about the equivalent of four surgeries a month.

“And prior to the election I’ve held 24 town hall meetings where people can ask questions.

“I’ve listened to people and tried to get some changes, such as rural crime and estate management charges.

“But there’s still things to do, I’m particularly keen on improving the response on flood risk, improving the quality of our rivers and challenging some of the excessive development that threatens the rural character of North Bedfordshire,” he said.

The constituency covers a large area shared between two local authorities, does this make representing it a challenge?

Mr Fuller said: “You certainly have got to know the area, and you’ve got to know it in detail.

“In the old constituency of North East Bedfordshire there were 56 parishes, [now there are 50].

“[As I’ve already you’ve got to be] accessible, so being available not just necessarily to the parish councils, but to all the local residents so they can talk about what issues are important in their area, that’s a key thing.

“One of the things that comes out from these is that people want their public services to work better.

“And they ask why hasn’t the government, and why haven’t I, achieved more.

“I talk about some of the great progress we have made, the achievements that have been made.

“The Covid vaccine response is an example of the health ministry working exceptionally well.

“So we know we can do it,” he said.

Mr Fuller said the role of MP isn’t just to ask the Civil Service to do things, it’s to hold it to account too, as well as the regulators.

“There is a responsibility on MPs to really investigate and have skill sets to look at things.

“That’s a part and parcel of what you do as an MP.”

Mr Fuller said another common concern from constituents is the integrity of members of parliament.

“Obviously more attention is on the governing party,” he said.

“But there’s a general sense of wanting members of parliament to live up to the standards and to uphold the principles of integrity.

“People give their trust when they go into the ballot box, people are putting their cross and I’ve always felt that cross is a mark of trust in an individual.

“A mark of trust to say I think you understand our area the best, and I think you will uphold good standards.

“And I’m giving you the trust to do those things for the next five years.

“I think there’s a responsibility on whoever wins in the election that they should have the skills, have that knowledge, and act appropriately,” he said.

“It’s an important election for people to vote on. There’s a lot to do from day one.”

The other candidates seeking to be the North Bedfordshire MP are:

Pippa Clayton – Reform UKPhilippa Flemming – Green

Uday Nagaraju – LabourJoanna Szaub-Newton – Lib Dem

The election will be held on July 4.