The Conservative MP for Stoke-on-Trent Central, Jo Gideon, announced last year that she would not be standing for re-election at this general election. On 7 June, minutes after the candidate nominations closed, she released a statement: “Sadly, my political journey has been overshadowed by a persistent lack of support and a toxic culture from the Party, both at Westminster and locally”.
Gideon went on to say that the Conservative Party, including members of the local Federation, has allowed “discrimination, bullying and unethical practices to fester”.
Several incidents, including being cropped out of a photograph of local political leaders visiting Downing Street last year, prompted her to “stand down with dignity” rather than face a deselection she believes would have been “unjust” based on her record in office.
Conservative toxic culture should end
Gideon won the Stoke-on-Trent Central seat which had previously been held by Labour at the 2019 general election with a majority of 670. During her time in parliament, she achieved national recognition for her campaign to raise awareness about the dangers posed by button batteries following the death of local two-year-old Harper-Lee Fanthorpe after she swallowed one.
In February 2023, Gideon announced her decision to stand down.
Now that she is about to leave office, she said she felt it was important to “set the record straight and expose the unethical practices that have become pervasive within the party”. Speaking to the press, she described how she had faced “persistent bullying” from officers of the local Federation. This, she said, had impacted her physical and mental health. She added that “if the Conservative Party does find itself in opposition”, then it needs to take a long “hard look at how they have allowed discrimination, bullying, and unethical practices to fester”.
Bullying allegations
Bullying is a festering issue in our politics and has been reported across all parties, throughout parliament and in local government.
There have been a number of allegations of bullying made against senior Conservatives, including Dominic Raab, who resigned from his post as Justice Secretary in 2023 after an internal report upheld claims that he had acted in an “intimidating” manner when giving feedback to members of his staff.
Gideon described her belief that the party should be “judging individuals based on their merits, skills, and dedication to public service. It is antithetical to our values to allow discrimination, whether based on age, gender, health or any other personal characteristic, to influence the treatment and deselection of our MPs”.
In her view, politics should be “about serving the public, not a ruthless game of who can climb the greasy pole the fastest”.
Response
A spokesperson for the Conservative Party told the BBC, “We thank Jo Gideon for the fantastic work she did as the MP for Stoke Central and wish her well for the future”.
In response to her claims that the party’s “toxic culture” was deterring a more diverse range of people from coming forward to be candidates the spokesperson said, “We have a wide range of candidates standing at this election from a variety of backgrounds and walks of life.”
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