Labour and Liberal Democrats to stand aside in Southend West by-election following murder of MP David Amess
The party is set to follow the principle established after Jo Cox’s murder in 2016, when the major parties refused to select candidates in the subsequent Batley and Spen by-election.
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Labour and the Liberal Democrats will not contest the expected Southend West by-election following the murder of MP Conservative MP Sir David Amess, it is understood.
The parties will follow the precedent of Jo Cox’s murder in 2016, when the main opposition parties refused to select candidates in the subsequent Batley and Spen by-election “as a mark of respect”.
Ms Cox was murdered by a neo-Nazi outside a constituency surgery in Birstall, West Yorkshire.
Sir David was killed while meeting constituents at a routine public surgery on Friday.
Labour peer Lord Pendry said leaving the seat uncontested would “honour” the Conservative politician.
“This is an occasion when you see the leader of the opposition and the prime minister together, and it shows that our democracy transcends all that sort of thing,” he said.
“I think we should be saying that whoever the Conservatives put up, it is their seat because they were deprived of it, so they should have it back.
“I think all the major parties should stand aside in the interest of democracy and our own democratic way of life.”
Senior Labour figure who knew Sir David Amess “pretty well” gets in touch to propose that Opposition parties should give Tories “a free run” & not stand in Southend West by-election.
— Jon Craig (@joncraig) October 16, 2021
A 25-year-old man has been arrested on suspicion of murder and counter terror detectives are currently investigating his motivations, say Essex Police - potentially linked to Islamist extremism.
The investigation is being led by the Met’s Counter Terrorism Command who declared it a terrorist incident.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments