Sarah Teather MP throws in the towel

[Guest]

The prominent Liberal Democrat MP Sarah Teather – who shot to fame when she became the youngest member of parliament a decade ago – has announced that she is to quit the House of Commons because she no longer feels that Nick Clegg's party fights sufficiently for social justice and liberal values on immigration.

http://www.theguardian.com/politics/2013/sep/07/lib-dem-sarah-teather-step-down

She's my MP and I voted for her and her anti-Iraq invasion stance at the by-election when she was elected. I've voted for her ever since because she's been a good constituency MP and she helped me out when I was homeless.

I never felt that she was comfortable in coalition government with the Tories and her subsequent demotion allowed her to speak out in Parliament about welfare cuts and other repressive measures.

She made a last-minute volte-face about equal marriage because it was in conflict with her Catholic principles, she said. I wonder too how much it was against the principles of a significant number of her multi-faith constituents. Cheers, Sarah.

The pundits say that her announcement will be an embarrassment to Clegg coming as it does just before the Lib-Dem Party Conference in Glasgow. From what I've seen of the Lib-Dem Press Releases in response, the party has already moved on with more than a hint of Windsor Davies' "oh dear, what a pity, never mind". Whether or not the reaction of the party activists is of the same order will emerge next week.

[Anna]

Well, to be honest Ams, she says she's staying until 2015 as an MP so surely better she stays as a thorn in their side and keeps nipping their heels than walking out altogether and abandoning her constituents?

[amateur51]

Well, to be honest Ams, she says she's staying until 2015 as an MP so surely better she stays as a thorn in their side and keeps nipping their heels than walking out altogether and abandoning her constituents?

True Anna, but there again she could resign her seat now and stand as an independent.

However that would mean burning her boats with colleagues in the party, I guess.

[Anna]

True Anna, but there again she could resign her seat now and stand as an independent.
However that would mean burning her boats with colleagues in the party, I guess.

Yes, and mean not gaining a seat as an Independent. Personally, I think it's better to keep the seat and embark on a campaign of rattling the chains and exposing what needs to be exposed, go out on a limb, become a maverick. Nothing to lose, draw attention to the LibDems failings and weaknesses.

[ahinton]

I suspect that her departure will amount to a considerable loss to more than just the LibDems...

[Ferretfancy]

The sad fact is that the number of MPs in the Commons who have had some experience of 'real' life is steadily shrinking. To see any principled person withdrawing in such disillusion is very disturbing, regardless of party.

[Anna]

The sad fact is that the number of MPs in the Commons who have had some experience of 'real' life is steadily shrinking. To see any principled person withdrawing in such disillusion is very disturbing, regardless of party.

Yes, and isn't it the fact of 'posh boys' who have never had a proper job, never had to balance the household budget, which makes us so disillusioned with the whole lot of them? I don't know about anyone else but I am totally fed up with 'career politicians', where are the people with fire in their belly who are passionate about their beliefs? Died out with Aneurin Bevan and then the coming of Nu Labour I suspect .... who were a disaster and got us into the mess we are in now.
Yours, disaffected of Llandridnod Wells. <banned smiley emoticon> :-)

[ahinton]

The sad fact is that the number of MPs in the Commons who have had some experience of 'real' life is steadily shrinking. To see any principled person withdrawing in such disillusion is very disturbing, regardless of party.

I could not agree more!

[ahinton]

Yours, disaffected of Llandridnod Wells.

Notwithstanding my struggles to pronounce that place correctly on various occasions, it is surely Llandrindod, n'est-ce pas? Anyway, I thought that you were from somewhere in the region of Way-on-High (sp.)...

[zoomy]

She won her seat from Labour in the wake of widespread disgust at Blair's decision to invade Iraq. but her chances of retaining the seat were always very slim indeed and more so since the Liberals joined the coalition. She was sacked from her job as children's minister and therefore she realised that her ministerial career was probably over for good, whatever the result of the next election.


She claims she is leaving on principle following reservations about the government's social security reforms, particularly the benefit cap (she knows that her constituents will not return her to parliament because of it) but she did not vote against the measure in parliament, she simply failed to attend the votes - if she was principled, she would have voted against, failing to turn up does not make her principled.

She did, however vote against same sex marriage, being a religious catholic - which I suppose makes her principled in a socially conservative way (do we need any more of those in parliament).

I remember her appearance on This Week where she was very dull and merely kept repeating the party line, causing Brillo Pad to wonder allowed "why we had you on". Her constituents might wonder the same when all she has brought them is social conservatism and her party's unfortunate coalition with the Tories with its subsequent attacks on the poor.

She also voted in favour of raising tuition fees to £9,000 - a clear breaking of a Liberal election promise - Sarah Teather principled ? don't make me laugh.

[Alison]

What's her record on expenses ?

[amateur51]

What's her record on expenses ?

Pretty good, she lives in her constituency. She was not implicated in the expenses scandals.

[amateur51]

She also voted in favour of raising tuition fees to £9,000 - a clear breaking of a Liberal election promise - Sarah Teather principled ? don't make me laugh.

This was in the phase when she was hoping for ministerial office but when she got it, I think she fouind that it wasn't for her(to her credit perhaps, a bit like Estelle Morris). .

But I agree, it was an error of judgement.

[zoomy]

This was in the phase when she was hoping for ministerial office but when she got it, I think she fouind that it wasn't for her(to her credit perhaps, a bit like Estelle Morris). .

But I agree, it was an error of judgement.

Error of judgement ? I think not 51 more like putting promotion before principle.

[amateur51]

Error of judgement ? I think not 51 more like putting promotion before principle.

Isn't that an error of judgment then?