Peterborough by-election: who is in the running?
Swing seat all to play for after disgraced Fiona Onasanya recalled
Voters in Peterborough will head to the polls on 6 June to elect a new MP, after 27% of eligible constituents signed a recall petition calling for incumbent Fiona Onasanya to stand down.
What did Onasanya do?
The 35-year-old MP was found guilty of perverting the course of justice by colluding with her brother to avoid having three points added to her licence for speeding.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
The jury was told that she lied “persistently and deliberately” to avoid prosecution.
She was expelled from the Labour party before serving 28 days of a three-month prison sentence, while her brother was sentenced to ten months in jail for the same crime.
Why wasn’t she forced to stand down?
MPs are automatically expelled from Parliament only if their custodial sentence exceeds 12 months. Nevertheless Labour still urged Onasanya to “act honourably and resign”.
She continued to sit as an independent, stressing her innocence in a video posted on social media and vowing to fight to clear her name.
However, she lost an appeal against her conviction when judges ruled there was “absolutely no basis” for a legal challenge, Sky News reports.
Under the Recall Act (2015), voters in her constituency were able to sign a petition to vacate the seat and trigger a by-election. The petition needed the signatures of more than 10% of eligible electors – around 7,000 people in this case – within an allotted six-week period.
In the end, more than 19,261 signatures were obtained from the 69,673 electors eligible to sign the petition, or 27.64%, well exceeding the 10% required to vacate the seat.
This was the first time the Recall Act has been successfully used to remove an MP. Last year, Ian Paisley Jr, the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) MP for North Antrim, held on to his seat after a recall petition against him failed to garner the requisite number.
Paisley was suspended from the House of Commons for 30 days last June for accepting luxury holidays to Sri Lanka worth £100,000, and not disclosing them.
Who is running for selection?
Labour won in Peterborough by just 607 votes in the 2017 general election, beating Conservative Stewart Jackson, who had held the seat since 2005.
Jeremy Corbyn’s party has vowed to fight any by-election “vigorously” and has selected Lisa Forbes, who stood for the seat in 2015, to run.
The Tories have selected Brexit supporter and local resident Paul Bristow to stand in the constituency where more than 60% of residents voted to leave the EU. Local councillor John Whitby has been selected to stand for UKIP.
The Independent reports that the Liberal Democrats, the Greens and newly formed party Change UK were last night “holding conversations about supporting a candidate” to stand on a united pro-Remain People’s Vote platform.
“But it is understood that talks are still ongoing over whether the pro-EU parties could support a single candidate, rather than splitting the Remain vote in what is sure to be a closely fought election,” says the news site.
Nigel Farage's new Brexit Party has sought to capitalise on the strong Leave vote in the area, announcing it will field Mike Greene, a former contestant on Channel 4's Secret Millionaire, as a candidate.
Sky News reports that former Respect MP George Galloway announced he would be standing last week, but has now withdrawn after the Brexit Party's announcement.
He said he had “tried to persuade” Farage to support his candidacy to “emphasise the broad democratic alliance the campaign must be and balance the candidatures of Ms (Ann) Widdecombe and Ms (sister of William Rees-Mogg, Annunziata) Rees-Mogg”.
Create an account with the same email registered to your subscription to unlock access.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
-
A history of student protest at Columbia University
The Explainer Anti-Israel demonstrations at NYC's Ivy League university echo protests against Vietnam War and South African apartheid
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
'Trump is ruled in contempt'
Today's Newspapers A roundup of the headlines from the US front pages
By The Week Staff Published
-
Hainault sword attack: police hunt for motive
Speed Read Mental health is key line of inquiry, as detectives prepare to interview suspect
By Arion McNicoll, The Week UK Published
-
Will Aukus pact survive a second Trump presidency?
Today's Big Question US, UK and Australia seek to expand 'game-changer' defence partnership ahead of Republican's possible return to White House
By Sorcha Bradley, The Week UK Published
-
Britain's biggest political donors
The Explainer With the 2024 general election set to be the highest-spending contest ever we look at who is giving to which party and why
By The Week UK Published
-
It's the economy, Sunak: has 'Rishession' halted Tory fightback?
Today's Big Question PM's pledge to deliver economic growth is 'in tatters' as stagnation and falling living standards threaten Tory election wipeout
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
What will £28bn green investment U-turn cost Labour?
Today's Big Question Dropping flagship pledge 'will confirm workers' scepticism of the endless promises of jam tomorrow', said union leader
By The Week UK Published
-
Why your local council may be going bust
The Explainer Across England, local councils are suffering from grave financial problems
By The Week UK Published
-
Rishi Sunak and the right-wing press: heading for divorce?
Talking Point The Telegraph launches 'assault' on PM just as many Tory MPs are contemplating losing their seats
By Keumars Afifi-Sabet, The Week UK Published
-
How many seats do Labour and the Tories need to win?
In depth Changes to constituency boundaries mean Labour needs even bigger swing at next election to form a majority
By Sorcha Bradley, The Week UK Published
-
How would a second Trump presidency affect Britain?
Today's Big Question Re-election of Republican frontrunner could threaten UK security, warns former head of secret service
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published