General Election candidates outline their bids to become Mid Derbyshire's next MP

Mid Derbyshire’s former MP, Conservative Pauline Latham, has stood down and retired after representing the constituency between 2010 and and 2024 during the Tories' reign.

Candidates for the seat include Conservative Luke Gardiner, Labour’s Jonathan Davies, Liberal Democrat Barry Holliday, Reform UK’s Stephen Dean, the Green Party’s Gez Kinsella, Independent Sue Warren, and the Workers Party’s Josiah Uche.

The 2024 General Election's themes include the economy, immigration and the NHS among other issues as well as regional constituency concerns and voters will soon be able to cast their votes based on what they consider most important on July 4, at the polling booths.

Conservative Luke Gardiner said: "I’m proud to call Mid Derbyshire home and will be relentless in championing the issues that matter to people here."

Mr Gardiner has pledged to stay active 'all year round' and he has outlined some of his promises should he be elected.

These include: Fighting alongside residents to protect precious green spaces which he claims Labour wants to sacrifice; Keep Mid Derbyshire moving - from getting additional step-free station access, to restoring bus services like the Spondon flyer and extending his campaign to improve roads; Back local businesses - by securing more banking hubs to ensuring world-leading firms like Vaillant and Rolls-Royce continue to prosper: Using his background in crime policy to work with the police to keep streets safe: Back farmers and fight to conserve heritage sites like the Belper Mills and Allestree Hall: Keep campaigning for better public services and press Labour-led councils not to send resources elsewhere.

Labour’s Jonathan Davies said: "Britain is an incredible country, but it’s held back. After 14 years of the Conservatives, the Tories say their plan is working. But is life getting better?

"NHS waiting lists are at record highs and 90per cent of crimes go unsolved.

"People face soaring bills and mortgages, and some fear they may never own their own home. All while we have the highest tax burden in over 70 years.

"Labour has a plan for change, and I want to be part of it to deliver opportunity for you.

"Labour will tackle NHS waiting lists and recruit more police. It will also start GB Energy to address the climate emergency and get people’s bills down.

"I am also campaigning for our creative industries. Music, art and theatre are huge aspects of our economy and part of who we are as a society – but they lack support to flourish for us all."

Liberal Democrat Barry Holliday has stated: “The Lib Dems have research showing that the Conservative Government’s boasts over inflation reaching 2.3per cent ring hollow in the face of such startling increases in mortgage payments which have been pushing families to the brink.

"Numbers from the ONS say 15.3per cent of households in Amber Valley re-mortgaged in the last year, 13.5per cent in Derby and 16per cent in Erewash, meaning approximately 30,927 families faced an additional cost on average of £128 per month across these 3 local authorities.”

Mr Holliday has also previously stated Derbyshire is rejecting the ‘same old, same old’ from Labour and the Conservatives.

He added: “If you want change, if your family and friends need change, if your neighbours and local businesses are desperate for change then I will be that change for you.

"If you want to see an end to the Conservatives taking Mid Derbyshire for granted as they have done for the last 14 years, then I am your only logical anti-Tory candidate.”

He said: “Local health services have been brought to their knees, people’s mortgages and rent have sky-rocketed and water companies have been allowed to pump their filthy sewage into our rivers including here in Derbyshire.

"All this by a Conservative Government more interested in fighting between themselves than standing up for the country. Every vote for the Liberal Democrats is a vote for a fair deal. It’s a vote for a party that will stand up for our community and our health services.”

Reform UK's Stephen Dean said: "I was honoured to be selected for the seat of Mid Derbyshire for Reform UK and help a movement determined to make things right.

"The state of the nation has become so intolerable that even people’s basic needs, such as housing, are not being met. It has become unbearable to witness the repeat cycle of Conservative-Labour administrations and see greater outrages imposed on ordinary people.

"The nation feels oppressed and conformist and our culture is being diverted away from traditional English values. I believe that Reform UK, as a fresh, young party, has the potential to reform the parliamentary system, the continual Conservative or Labour kayfabe and the civil service, which carries out the policy decided by the unaccountable.

"I believe we must stand above the old dogmas of left-wing and right-wing politics and take the best ideas from both.

"Power must be returned to the people. Manufactured divisiveness must end, and policy must focus on delivering harmony and balance so that people can live happy, fulfilled lives."

The Green Party's website stated its Mid Derbyshire candidate Gez Kinsella, who has been a Derbyshire County Councillor since 2021 and a Borough Councillor since 2023, joined the Green Party to address unfairness and environmental injustices and to bring about fundamental changes necessary to address these issues while suggesting improvements to Net Zero plans.

Most of Mr Kinsella's working life has been in the housing sector, according to the Green Party, transforming services and delivering effective performance management and focusing on outcomes for tenants.

Mr Kinsella has held councils to account and improved services, according to The Green Party, shining a light on injustices by campaigning against care home closures, delivering Derbyshire’s first School Street, campaigning for better roads, championing safe cycling and walking and promoting ‘active travel plans’ and he is passionate about improving access for people with disabilities.

The Workers Party’s Josiah Uche has stated: "I strongly believe in common-sense politics. I have always been passionate about the happenings in my local constituency of Mid Derbyshire and I am dedicated to contributing to its development. After observing how the area has been deprived of essential funding, I feel it is time to take a positive action.

"The Conservative Government has been in charge of Mid Derbyshire for over 14 years and has unfortunately neglected the people of the area. It is evident that a change is needed. We urgently require a fresh perspective and new ideas to address the issues affecting our local communities.

"For instance, the roads in and around Mid Derbyshire are riddled with potholes, and these are some of the key issues that I will champion if elected.

"My passion for politics and love for my local community is the driving force behind my decision to take action and seek a seat in the House of Parliament."

Independent candidate Sue Warren could not be contacted.

Prior to the dissolution of Parliament on May 30 before the July 4 General Election, Derbyshire was a Conservative stronghold with nine Conservative MPs and two Labour MPs.

With National polls currently suggesting Labour still has a considerable lead over the Conservatives, who have been in Government for 14 years, the General Election outcome across Derbyshire could prove to be significant.