After the revelations that John Bercow, the Conservative MP for Buckingham, "flipped" the designation of his main home in 2003 in order to avoid liability for Capital Gains Tax, we are asking councillors in his constituency for their views on whether he should be deselected. Here Cllr Jackie Phipps gives her response:
John Bercow has been and is an excellent constituency MP. I have always been pleasantly surprised by how many people, including non Conservatives, have enthusiastically told me how he has helped them or someone they know.
In my village the school was having problems with the County Council installing safety measures for the children and in despair the school wrote to John. He wrote a letter and a site meeting was arranged and the problems solved. Last year the village was threatened with the closure of its Post Office. I wrote a draft 'In Touch' and took it to the constituency office. John was there preparing to see constituents. I showed him the 'In Touch' and asked for his comments and support. He gave both. He was one of those whose support helped to save our Post Office. On Tuesday night I went to a WI Quiz where someone said that she had written to John and that he had replied in a couple of days. She was very impressed. I believe a majority of his constituents will vote for him again.
Many MPs have acted very stupidly by claiming more than they should have done and will hopefully pay the price. They have brought Parliament into disrepute and alienated an electorate who are angry enough to vote for anyone else, but I believe that everyone (including MPs) should not be considered guilty until proved guilty. If John has committed a crime he will have to pay for it. I would like to hear his side of the story before making a judgement on what he has done.
