'Would love to be back': Ex-Portsmouth MP Penny Mordaunt allowed to stand as Tory candidate after lengthy wait
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Prospective Conservative candidates have been given a lengthy wait to find out if they can stand
Former Portsmouth North MP Dame Penny Mordaunt will be allowed to serve as a Conservative candidate after a lengthy wait.
The ex-defence secretary has revealed that Tory leader Kemi Badenoch has allowed her to represent the party at the next General Election. Speaking to BBC’s Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg, she said: “I have passed my parliamentary assessment board. I am waiting to see what seats I can go for, but I have a full pass from the candidates committee.”
Dame Penny will have to go over another hurdle to have her chance to return to Westminster. She’ll need to be selected by a local Tory association as its candidate. It has not been determined which seat she could be standing in.
“I would love to be back in the squad,” the former cabinet member added. “If I am not selected, I will be in the stands cheering on the team and volunteering to chop the oranges at half-time.”
Dame Penny lost her Portsmouth North seat to Labour’s Amanda Martin at the 2024 General Election by 780 votes. The Times reported in August this year that many prospective candidates were waiting to see if they can stand for the Conservatives.
Ms Badenoch said she wanted to overhaul the party and take it in a new direction. High-profile former colleagues who were barred include Grant Shapps, who served as defence secretary between 2023 and 2024.
The national publication reported that politicians would need to agree with the party’s position on various issues, which includes leaving the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) and scrapping 2050 net zero targets. Dame Penny was reportedly expecting a decision by the end of June, but dragged on for several months.
Dame Penny suggested she had only supported the flagship net zero target and leaving the ECHR while in government because of her Cabinet positions. When asked if she agreed with the ECHR and Net Zero positions, she said: “I’m very happy with the party position on all these issues.
“I think Kemi is right. I’ve always towed the party line… I haven’t always had my first choice as leader but I’ve followed the party line.“And I think that Kemi is right to require her potential MPs to say they will deliver the manifesto they stand on.
“Have I agreed 100 per cent with every policy? No, I haven’t, and that’s what collective responsibility is about. But I’m very happy with the policy position as it is. And I think we’ve tried a lot of things to deal with some of the big issues that are facing this country and now things like leaving the ECHR are the only course of action.”