Tom Gordon has said that Kemi Badenoch’s Conservative Party has “turned its back on former Conservative voters” in Harrogate and Knaresborough by abandoning the traditional British values of tolerance, decency and the rule of law.
Tom Gordon says it comes after the Conservative Conference in Manchester, during which Kemi Badenoch committed to tearing up the Climate Change Act and withdraw from the ECHR, which protects our rights and freedoms.
The issue of the ECHR is a very complex one though, with some believing that it protects freedom, but others that it undermines the sovereign state, undermining the ability of a country to manage itself, and it is no longer used as a way to protect the rights of the majority. The question around the ECHR has come to the fore when it has been used as a mechanism to block illegal immigrants being deported, and a disparity on how it is applied between member states.
For Northern Ireland, the ECHR is part of the building blocks for the Good Friday Agreement, so, as a statement from Badenoch, it is not clear what the intention would be there.
Tom Gordon MP, Harrogate and Knaresborough, said:
Under Kemi Badenoch’s leadership, the Conservative Party has abandoned voters in communities like ours in favour of chasing after Nigel Farage.
While Badenoch’s party continues to obsess over ripping up people’s rights and protections for the environment, they are ignoring the damage they did to local families in Harrogate and Knaresborough facing soaring mortgages and crumbling local health services.
The Liberal Democrats will stand up to the divisive politics of Farage and Badenoch and fight for a decent and caring Britain.
We will offer a home to former Conservative voters who feel let down by their own party and are looking for someone who will represent their values.
