Sir Bernard Jenkin on why he should be re-elected Harwich MP

My first question to Mr Jenkin was why should constituents vote for him and the Conservatives when, as of writing, a Labour landslide is predicted nationally.

Mr Jenkin said: “This isn't an area that would usually be very happy with the Labour government, and least of all a Labour government with a huge majority.”

“There's a lot of people who tell you that they would rather have a Conservative MP and particularly someone really locally based, who's done a lot of local work over the years, than someone new who’s just going to support Keir Starmer.”

Mr Jenkin said Labour candidate Alex Diner did not have his track record of 32 years.

He said: “I've got a track record that people trust. And do you want to just go back to square one and start with somebody who to my knowledge, has never lived in Essex?

“I’ve got nothing against him personally. I'm sure one day he will be a good MP, but probably not here.”

Europe - Sir Bernard Jenkin voted to leave the EU and was part of the pressure group Leave Means Leave (Image: PA)

Asked about the Reform UK party, whose leader  Nigel Farage is running in the neighbouring Clacton constituency, Mr Jenkin said: “He is clearly helping the Labour Party.

“His objective seems to be to make sure as many Labour MPs are elected as possible, barring himself, his own seat, so that the Conservative party gets a real drubbing. But is that what is going to be good for democracy?”

Mr Jenkin also said the need to curb immigration was a challenge that all “governments face” saying: “Every country in Europe is having an immigration crisis - it's proved to be much more difficult to resolve.”

When asked what the Conservatives' policy would be to curb immigration Mr Jenkin said, “We'll have to get tougher with Europe, with the European Court of Human Rights.”

He continued: “I want to be on the common ground with the British people, with the majority of the British people”.

“I think the centre ground has shifted.

“I don't think Farage would have been stepping into this race if he thought the centre ground was where you won elections."

Candidate - Sir Bernard Jenkin was the MP for Colchester North in 1992, and went on to represent North Essex before the Harwich and North Essex constituency was created (Image: Steve Brading)

I also asked Sir Bernard Jenkin about child poverty, food banks, and the cost-of-living crisis.

He said: “The cost of living has obviously been a big challenge, but as it has been in all the European economies, all challenged by the debt overhang from Covid to the energy crisis and the war in Ukraine.”

“Poverty has got worse in some respects, but we've got far more incentives to get people back into work with Universal Credit, which the Labour Party now supports.”

Regarding food banks, Mr Jenkin said that they “mostly help people through a transition period of their lives” and that the Conservatives have lowered unemployment.

I asked Mr Jenkin, who has been an MP since 1992, why Labour has such a high polling rating and whether the NHS would be an issue for the Conservatives.

He criticised doctors striking for a 35 per cent pay increase, adding: “I think most people would agree that demanding a 35 per cent pay increase in the present economic climate is a bit unreasonable, particularly when doctors and junior doctors included are paid much better than the average.”

Mr Jenkin said he had campaigned on GP issues for years, building a new surgery in Wivenhoe “a long time ago now”, supporting the Mayflower medical practice, and saving a surgery in Dedham.

Mr Jenkin said a new GP surgery was needed in Mersea and, where he was campaigning that day, to cover Lawford, and Manningtree.

When asked about how he could relate the common voter, or a voter on the minimum wage, after being an MP for 32 years, Mr Jenkin said: “I’m not pretending I’ve been through an experience on the national minimum wage.

“But I do meet people, a lot in fact. MPs in their surgeries, through their contact with people, meet an enormous variety of people that most people never meet.”

He also said people came to him as a last resort, whether a child getting special education needs help or a single mother with social housing – “things I grapple with on a weekly basis”.Cleared - Sir Bernard Jenkin was cleared on March 27 2024 for breaching covid regulations (Image: Archant)

I asked Mr Jenkin if one reason why the Conservatives are behind in the polls is due to the "sleaze" of lockdown which resulted in Prime Minister Boris Johnson resigning and Mr Jenkin investigated - with the allegations found not to be upheld.  

Mr Jenkin said: "That's had a great deal of prominence and I mean certainly Rishi has apologised for that as as we all should, and we've moved on. 

"I think most people struggled during the pandemic one way or another, but I don't think that the deciding factor in people's minds in this election should be about that."

Mr Jenkin also said the Conservatives have "got the economy moving in the right direction again" which is what "people should be thinking about".

“And anybody who says that it's going to be teddy bears and warm milk and honey all the way, and you won't have to make these difficult choices. Well, who do you believe?”

To conclude, Mr Jenkin said: “I think I've established a good local record as a good local MP, and I get a lot of positive feedback about that.

“Do people want to throw the baby out with the bathwater and lose that?”

The other candidates are: Andrew Canessa (Green), Mark Cole (Reform UK), Alex Diner (Lab), Bernard Jenkin (Con) and Natalie Sommers (Lib Dem)