"Everybody should reapply": Gosport MP addresses Penny Mordaunt situation amid wait to become Tory candidate

The MP for Gosport has backed the Conservative party’s lengthy process to approve candidates - with former Portsmouth North MP Penny Mordaunt still waiting in the wings.

Dame Caroline Dinenage hopes the former defence secretary will make a triumphant return to the House of Commons, but also believes the party needs to do its due diligence to select the best possible candidates. Several prospective standees, including Dame Penny, are yet to find out if they can represent the Tories at the next General Election.

The Times previously reported that a cohort of applicants are waiting for approval from Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch. There is a belief that politicians who don’t match her policies will be omitted.

Dame Caroline said the process is correct given the crushing defeat for the Conservatives at the last election. She told The News: “A lot of people were fed up with the Tories. Clearly, mistakes were made, and we have to rebuild.

“We’re doing that very successfully under Kemi’s leadership. She’s a brilliant leader. She very rightly made the decision to scrap the old candidates list and start again. Everybody should reapply. We need to make sure the candidates are of very high calibre. I think Penny is one of those.

“She’s brilliant and we’ve stood side-by-side for many years. I’d love to see her come back. Whether that is in Portsmouth North or somewhere else, I don’t know, but it would be brilliant to see her back on the green benches again.”

The Times said sitting MPs have privately criticised the “poor way former colleagues are being treated”, with one describing it as a “chaotic mess”. Prospective candidates, including Dame Penny, have had to go through an interview and six-hour assessment.

They were reportedly quizzed about policies such as scrapping of net-zero targets and leaving the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR). Grant Shapps, another former defence secretary and a prominent figure in previous Conservative governments, has been blocked from standing as a candidate. Ms Badenoch previously said she would be overseeing a different party.

A further move to the right to match Reform UK could leave traditional Tory voters behind, who may look towards the Liberal Democrats or elsewhere. Dame Caroline believes this is not the case.

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She said: “The Conservative Party has always been a broad church. I regard myself as being a one nation Conservative and a centrist.

“We’ve always attracted people from all different sides of Conservative thinking. I’m a free market thinker who focuses on enabling our businesses to grow our country, and empower us out of the deep financial doldrums we find ourselves in.

“We need to remove bureaucracy and let our businesses and individuals flourish. Those are real Tory policies at their heart, and I think people can get behind those.”

Dame Penny lost her Portsmouth North seat to Labour candidate Amanda Martin in the 2024 General Election by 780 votes. Dame Caroline retained her seat by 6,054 votes against her nearest contender, Labour’s Edward Batterbury.