Exclusive

Nadine Dorries is not 'properly representing' her constituents Rishi Sunak tells LBC after she pledged to quit

2 August 2023, 09:46 | Updated: 2 August 2023, 11:15

Rishi Sunak says people 'deserve' an MP that engages with constituents and represents them

EJ Ward

By EJ Ward

Speaking to LBC's Nick Ferrari during an exclusive phone-in Prime Minister Rishi Sunak admitted that Nadine Dorries's constituents were "not being properly represented."

The question comes after a council in Nadine Dorries’s constituency is demanding that she immediately resign as an MP, saying “residents desperately need effective representation now”.

The former culture secretary announced on 9 June that she was standing down as the MP for Mid Bedfordshire “with immediate effect”, but she has yet to formally resign.

Reacting to a question from LBC listener Nathan who asked, "What should happen to an MP who doesn't speak in Parliament in over a year and takes two months to officially resign."

"I think people deserve to have an MP that represents them, wherever they are, engaging with you, representing you. Whether that is speaking in Parliament, or being present in their constituencies," Mr Sunak said.

Read more: Rishi Sunak tells homeowner facing £2,700 monthly mortgage repayments: 'Talk to your bank'

Read more: Rishi Sunak insists 'small businesses are booming' after resident tells him four closed in his constituency last week

When Nick asked the PM if that meant the people of Mid Bedfordshire were being failed, Mr Sunak shot back with: "At the moment people aren't being properly represented."

But the Prime Minister pledged a "fantastic candidate going forwards."

The Tory former Cabinet minister announced her intention to quit as an MP last month after she failed to receive a peerage in Boris Johnson's resignation honours list, but is yet to do so formally.
The Tory former Cabinet minister announced her intention to quit as an MP last month after she failed to receive a peerage in Boris Johnson's resignation honours list, but is yet to do so formally. Picture: Getty

Flitwick Town Council called on Ms Dorries "to immediately vacate your seat" amid "concerns and frustration" about her focus on her TV work and "political manoeuvres to embarrass the Government".

In a strongly worded letter, the councillors said: "The last time you spoke in the Commons was 7 June 2022.

"You have not maintained a constituency office for a considerable time, and it's widely understood that you have not held a surgery in Flitwick since March 2020.

"Rather than representing constituents, the council is concerned that your focus appears to have been firmly on your television show, upcoming book and political manoeuvres to embarrass the Government for not appointing you to the House of Lords.

"Councillors noted that your behaviour widely reported in the press is not in line with the Seven Principles of Public Life set out by Lord Nolan in 1995."

They noted that the residents of Flitwick, which with a population of around 13,800 represents the largest concentration of voters in the constituency, "desperately need effective representation now".

"Flitwick Town Council calls on you to immediately vacate your seat to allow a by-election."

Mid-Bedfordshire has been held by Ms Dorries since 2005 and the Conservative Party generally since 1931.

Rishi Sunak joined Nick Ferrari at Breakfast to take your calls | Watch Again

More Latest News

See more More Latest News

Breaking
The stabbing happened on Ramsden Street in Huddersfield.

Man, 20, charged with murder after 16-year-old boy stabbed to death in Huddersfield

Donald Trump's 10% tariff on UK products has officially come into force

Trump tariffs come into force as global stock markets plunge deeper into the red

File photo dated 19-05-2024 of Manchester City's Kevin De Bruyne lifting the Premier League trophy with team-mates.

Kevin De Bruyne to leave Manchester City, as Pep Guardiola calls him 'one of greatest midfielders to play in England'

Stock markets plummeted on Friday

Starmer 'pushing for Trump royal visit this year' as UK bids for US trade deal - after tariffs spark turmoil in markets

Tom Howard

British tourist killed after being struck by boulder on trek through Himalayas

In this photo provided by the Ukrainian Emergency Service, a car burns following a Russian missile attack that killed more than a dozen people, including children, in Kryvyi Rih, Ukraine, Friday, April 4, 2025. (Ukrainian Emergency Service via AP)

Russia kills 16 people including three children in missile strike on Zelenskyy's home town, with dozens wounded

Travel influencer Mykhailo Viktorovych Polyakov, 24, made an illegal visit to North Sentinel Island

Tourist who left Coke for world's most isolated tribe 'could have wiped them all out' - and police 'can't go collect can'

Club house covered in red paint as members of group Palestine action caused damage to the Trump owned site of Trump Turnberry Golf Club in Scotland.

Police arrest man, 33, and woman, 55, after Donald Trump's Scottish golf course vandalised with red paint

Man, 23, who gouged out pensioner's eyes before beating him to death with his own walking stick locked up indefinitely

Man, 23, who gouged pensioner's eyes out before beating him to death with his own walking stick locked up indefinitely

The FTSE 100 plummeted on Friday

UK stock market plunges amid Trump tariff chaos as FTSE 100 suffers worst trading losses in five years

The scene at Beckenham Place Park

London park evacuated as police search for teenage boy who went missing while swimming in lake

Tommy Robinson pictured last year

Tommy Robinson in bid for freedom with appeal against contempt of court jail sentence after libelling teen refugee

Layla Allen died at the scene

'Cherished beyond words': Family pay tribute to 'shining light' 13-year-old killed in Merseyside house fire

Russell Brand

Russell Brand breaks silence after actor and comedian charged with rape and sexual assaults

White House weighs in to support ‘censored’ anti-abortion activists in Britain

White House looking to support ‘censored’ anti-abortion activists in Britain

Sean "Diddy" Combs.

Sean 'Diddy' Combs charged with two further counts of sex trafficking