Mid Bedfordshire by-election: Ann Widdecombe says Reform UK's candidate is "on the side of the ordinary citizen"

Ann Widdecombe has said Reform UK’s Mid Beds candidate is “on the side of the ordinary citizen”.

During a visit to Maulden the former MP and MEP said the Reform UK candidate, Dave Holland, is “extremely local” and “knows the area backwards”.

“He has had connections with the area throughout his life, and in my mind that is very important, as he is not an import,” she said.

“They should vote not just for Dave, but they should vote because Dave represents Reform which is on the side of the ordinary citizen.

“We’re on the side of the ordinary citizen when it comes to crime, when it comes to stopping the boats, which the government talks endlessly about and does nothing,” she said.

“We’re on the side of the ordinary citizen when it comes to dealing with suppression of free speech and so that is why people should vote for Dave and vote for Reform. People tell me everywhere I go they tell me they’re fed up, well if they’re fed up they should vote for change.

“It’s no good being fed up and voting for the same thing,” she said.

Ms Widdecombe was asked what a solitary MP could bring to Parliament.

“Quite a lot actually, your voice in Parliament doesn’t depend on how many colleagues you’ve got,” she said. “It depends on what you’re saying, so he would be able to do quite a lot.

“We’ve also got another by-election going on in Tamworth so there might be two Reform voices in parliament,” she said.

Ms Widdecombe had a message for all those who think politicians are all the same.

“Well, obviously he’s not because he’s standing for a new party and if you want change and you want something new then you want Reform.

“The only people you can say ‘you are all the same to’ are those that have been there a very long time and have done exactly the same thing as everybody else,” she said,

“You can justly say that to the Conservatives, you can say it to Labour, there’s hardly a paper’s width between them.

“You can say it to the Lib Dems, goodness knows what they stand for these days it changes every five minutes,” she said.

She added that when people say they’re not voting it’s always because they’re “fed up”. “That they’ve had enough,” she said.

“Okay, if you’ve had enough then you have to vote for change, otherwise you’ll go on having enough because it won’t change.

“It seems elementary, dear Watson, if you’ve had enough, vote to end it,” she said.

The Mid Bedfordshire by-election will be held on October 19, and 13 candidates are standing to replace the former MP, Nadine Dorries.