Mixed Reactions Rumble Over Vote by Guildford Tory Rebel MP

Published on: 4 Sep, 2019
Updated on: 7 Sep, 2019

Last night’s (September 3) dramatic events in Parliament have left Guildford without a prospective Conservative candidate if a General Election is called on October 14 or 15.

If Anne Milton’s deselection remains, the Guildford Conservative Association (GCA) will have to select a new candidate. Or one could be parachuted in from Central Office.

The GCA chairman, Bob Hughes, who campaigned for Remain and is known to be a close ally of Ms Milton, declined comment at this stage.

The Conservative’s Worplesdon Matters website wasted no time in removing Anne Milton’s photo.

Christian Holliday

But Christian Holliday, a local Leave campaign organiser and former Conservative borough councillor, had little sympathy for her. He said: “It was disappointing to see Anne vote the way she did. GCA specifically voted to keep no-deal on the table and Boris Johnson has a clear mandate from the party membership for no-deal.

“It’s a shame Anne just couldn’t see the strategic opportunities presented by Brexit. Voting last night to take power from a Conservative government and pass it to Jeremy Corbyn and the EU is completely unacceptable.”

Hon Alderman Gordon Bridger

A more sympathetic but questioning view came from the local political veteran, Alderman Gordon Bridger. “Over the years, I have always found Anne a helpful and intelligent constituency MP and Guildford would be worse off without her,” he said.

“But what baffles me is how she can rule out a no-deal arrangement and expect the EU to make any new acceptable offers? For the first time the EU was faced with this realistic alternative.

“The present ‘non-negotiable’ offer infringes our territorial integrity and entails a permanent commitment to the EU and many of its rules. It has also been turned down three times by massive majorities in Parliament.

“I think we deserve to hear from Anne what her support, for what seems to be a very negative policy, will achieve? What does she expects the EU to offer, or us to secure, if we do not threaten no-deal?”

Zoe Franklin

Unsurprisingly, Zoe Franklin, the Lib Dem prospective parliamentary candidate for Guildford, had a different view. She said: “The vote in Parliament was deeply significant because it saw MPs from across the House of Commons and across the Leave-versus-Remain debate making it clear that Parliament is sovereign and they will not allow the democratically elected voice of the people to be shut down.”

About Ms Milton’s stance she said: “Anne and 20 other Conservative MPs voted against the government and lost the party whip, meaning she will sit as an Independent MP until the next General Election.

“I am pleased Anne chose to put the residents of Guildford and Cranleigh before her party, especially when the Conservative views are so at odds with the majority of local residents.”

Asked whether Guildford’s Lib Dems are prepared for a possible October election, Ms Franklin said: “We are absolutely ready. Everything is in place. I was reselected as parliamentary candidate at the beginning of this year and we have been campaigning all year for Guildford, Cranleigh and our villages.

“We won leadership of Guildford Borough Council and we’re already bringing a fresh wind of change after 16 years of one-party rule. For months, we have been engaging residents across Guildford with my Summer Survey and we’ve had excellent and positive feedback.

“The Liberal Democrats have won Guildford before and I am ready, along with ‘#Team Zoe’, to win this seat again and begin positive change for all our constituents.”

Ms Franklin was asked what she would say to Leavers who feel the real motivation behind Parliament’s action is a wish to overturn the 2016 EU referendum result.

“Last night we saw Parliament take back control and start the process of preventing a Prime Minister from shutting down Parliament, stopping proper debate and preventing a damaging no-deal Brexit,” she said.

“Parliament is sovereign and what’s most important right now is that our MPs, who are elected on a mandate to represent us, are allowed to debate the issues based on all available information.

“MPs of all persuasions have seen the latest evidence and are doing the job they were elected to do and what is best for our country, and our people.”

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