Jonny Mercer MP - the end?

Labour candidate thinks his time is up

The man hoping to oust Plymouth Moor View’s Tory MP from his seat says Labour’s success in Thursday’s council by-election could mark “an end to Johnny Mercer’s time as a Plymouth MP.”

Gareth Derrick, who is Labour’s prospective parliamentary candidate for Plymouth Moor View, was speaking after Will Noble gained Moor View with a majority of 538. 

Mr Derrick, a former Royal Navy senior commander, was selected to fight the Plymouth parliamentary seat last year and suggested the 17 per cent swing from the Tories to Labour in the ward was a serious threat to Mr Mercer’s chances of being re-elected at the next general election.  

“The result Will [Noble] achieved on Thursday should certainly put Mr Mercer on notice,” said Derrick. 

“Labour’s victory is a clear indication that people in Plymouth no longer feel the Conservatives, locally or nationally, are acting in their best interests in the face of a cost of living crisis, a collapsing NHS and a whole host of local issues,” he added. 

“What we saw was a collapse of the Tory vote, and the kind of swing we achieved on Thursday would put a stop to the Tory administration of the Council in May and see an end to Johnny Mercer’s time as a Plymouth MP.”

Despite Labour’s success in Moor View, the party failed to win in Plympton Chaddlewood where Lauren McLay boosted the size of the Green group to three with a majority of 228.  

And Labour Leader Cllr Tudor Evans, who represents Ham ward, insisted he is not looking to take over the council ahead of May’s local elections, despite his party now having more councillors than the Tories. 

Following the by-elections, council leader Richard Bingley, who holds the Southway seat for the Tories, rejected suggestion it was bad news for his party in the long term.

“We see this as probably quite typical of a mid-term government,” he said. “So, it's not unusual.”

He added: “I’m really optimistic that Plymouth is going to push forward.”

Thursday’s by-elections were triggered after the previous councillors, Dan Collins and Shannon Burden, stood down following complaints they they had moved to Gloucestershire and could no longer serve local residents.