Amos slams Tory opponent over memo
A leaked Conservative Party HQ memo reported in The Times has warned that Taunton MP Rebecca Pow is spending too much time on “ministerial business” instead of focusing on her constituency.
The memo also warned that many Conservative MPs and ministers were not getting behind the party’s general election campaign.
The Liberal Democrats said the leaked memo was “embarrassing” for the Conservatives and showed they were running scared of the Liberal Democrats in Taunton and Wellington and across the West Country.
Under the heading Rebecca Pow’s Taunton and Wellington seat, the leaked memo reads: “MP still focusing too much on ‘ministerial business’ and is noncommittal on time she will spend in the seat now and during the campaign.”
Liberal Democrat candidate for Taunton and Wellington Gideon Amos said:
“This must be very embarrassing for Conservative Party - surely their MPs should be giving proper attention to Taunton and Wellington all year round - or are they only concerned now there’s a General Election?
“In the face of our campaign’s growing strength - the Liberal tradition goes back generations here in the West Country - the Conservative Party appears to be be making a break for it and retreating in disarray.
“So many of their MPs are giving up and standing down - it’s no wonder The Times is reporting the Conservatives’ MP here is too busy focusing on a political career in Westminster to tackle the real issues in Taunton and Wellington, from GP waiting times and soaring mortgage payments after Liz Truss’s disastrous budget to our own river Tone being ruined by sewage.
“The Liberal Democrats are on the up here and across the West Country, after our big wins in by-elections and local elections.
“As our next MP, I would stand up to the government on behalf of Taunton and Wellington people as I have before - not just do the bidding of Ministers in Whitehall. Together we can end the years of Conservative neglect .”
“At this coming General Election the best way to change the government for good is by giving your vote to me and the Liberal Democrats - the strongest party here in Somerset that can defeat the Conservatives and provide that better, brighter future our county and our country so badly need”.