Leicester Mercury political correspondent
Tory trio take-off
Last Sunday Nicholas Bryars, chairman of the City of Leicester Conservative Association, sent a message to local supporters. It read:
Dear supporters,
As some of you are probably aware our candidates in Stoneygate have pulled out en-masse. If anyone knows of anyone who might be prepared to stand please contact me on ***** *** ***.
This raised the question of what sparked the walkout of three candidates.
Despite having a full slate of candidates for the first time in years, I wanted to know whether there’d been some kind of policy disagreement or clash of personalities.
The reason given, if true, is farcical. “Just one candidate pulled out,” I’m told by Nicholas, “but he’d promised to get two people he knew to stand alongside him.
“I didn’t know their names or who they were. So when he pulled out obviously we were left without any candidates at all for the three seats.”
“I didn’t expect this email to be leaked to the media,” he added.
Welcome to local politics, Nicholas.
about 1 year ago
That’s scarcely believable?! Nick Bryars wants us to believe that on the eve of the candidates being registered he didn’t know the names of two of the candidates in Stoneygate? Is this how the tory party in Leicester selects their candidates? Just get someone to bring along their mates? This just shows utter contempt by the tories for the people of Leicester if this is true.
Let me help Nick Bryars. I understand that the candidates(s) had a falling out with Ross Grant which prompted this en-masse pullout. It’s a clear pattern of a Party riven with division and a local Party leader who has lost control of his Group.