Meet the candidates standing to be your MP in the Rutland and Stamford constituency
Here the candidates standing for the Rutland and Stamford constituency set out why you should vote for them in the General Election on July 4.
Each candidate was offered the chance to provide 250 words.
Emma Baker - Green Party
Hi, I am Emma Baker, local teacher, district councillor and Mum.
As your Green Party parliamentary candidate for Rutland and Stamford, I have a bold vision for a fairer and greener future, offering real hope and real change for this community.
The NHS is in crisis, I will fight for investments to upgrade our healthcare facilities, ensuring that both patients and doctors have the environment and services they deserve.
We need homes, but not at the cost of our precious green belt and nature corridors. I will push for sustainable development on brownfield sites, and bringing empty homes back into use. Home insulation programmes will be of high importance to lower utility bills and our carbon footprint. A win for people and planet.
Solar farms will not compromise our environment. This means saying no to solar farms built on agricultural land whilst understanding Solar’s important role in reducing emissions. Right project, right location is key.
Supporting local agriculture is another priority. Farmers are the backbone of our community. By increasing the amount of food grown and traded within the UK, we can ensure food security and support our local economy.
Residents can also look forward to improved community services. I am committed to the reopening of leisure centres, providing vital recreational facilities for all. Additionally, enhancing transport links which will make commuting easier and more sustainable.
We have the opportunity to create a thriving community together. Vote Green for a fairer, greener Rutland and Stamford.
Thank you.
Joanna Burrows - Rejoin EU
I have been a member of the Liberal Democrats for nearly 50 years. However, I am standing for Rejoin EU because the Liberal Democrats and other main parties refuse to be honest and vocal about the catastrophic damage Brexit continues to cause our country, despite 60% of British people now regretting our departure.
Labour claims to prioritize growing the economy, yet our economy is estimated to be £140 billion smaller due to Brexit. Despite this, Labour has ruled out returning to the single market, customs union, or freedom of movement.
Rejoin EU candidates come from various political backgrounds with a shared goal of pressuring major parties to start immediate dialogue with the European Commission on rejoining the EU. This includes restoring free movement, renewing single-market and customs-union membership, suspending divergence from EU regulations, and developing closer ties with Brussels, including participation in Erasmus+ and other European initiatives.
We also propose extensive UK constitutional reforms to prevent future governance crises, including greater proportional representation, term membership of the House of Lords and stricter parliamentary conduct regulations.
A mother of three and grandmother of six, I have lived in the area for nearly 30 years. I have consistently invested in the community by serving as a county councillor for Rutland, working with Age UK to tackle loneliness in older people, collaborating with the Home Office to address drug and alcohol misuse, and raising funds for a charity supporting vulnerable teenage girls. I am also a trustee for Victoria Hall in Oakham.
Christopher Clowes - Reform UK
Growing up near Billesdon allowed me to appreciate our beautiful countryside and rich heritage. I've cherished local traditions like the Medbourne-Hallaton bottlekicking and point-to-point racing. Volunteering with the elderly and disabled taught me the importance of community, now threatened by a broken NHS, rising unemployment and mass development.
I aim to support small businesses by reducing their taxes and holding large companies to account on their favourable tax rates. High street shops should not be forced to close due to greedy landlords, high taxation and overhead costs.
Last winter nearly 20 people died in Rutland when they were unable to heat their own homes due to rising costs. When are able to provide cheap energy, it is insulting and inhumane to take this basic necessity away with unachievable net-zero targets that cost the poorest the most.
Current Tory policies harm the countryside, appealing to metropolitan voters at the expense of rural communities. We must stop demonising farmers and using them as pawns for net-zero, despite them supplying the single most essential resource for humanity – food.
Reform is the voice of common sense in politics. We believe that system is broken and needs to be fixed from the ground up. Throwing more money at things is not the answer; it only needs to higher taxation.
Reform believes in small government, stripping power away from civil servants and politicians. Fundamentally, we seek to restore pride in our nation – in politics, in the countryside, in our communities and in our country.
Alicia Kearns - Conservative Party
It has been an honour to serve as the Member of Parliament for Rutland for the past four years, and now I’m asking for your trust, to serve our communities in Rutland and Stamford and make your voices heard in Westminster.
Over the past four years, I have worked hard on behalf of residents to:
Save services at Rutland Memorial Hospital
Deliver five safety upgrades to the A1 and a review of the central reservation crossings
Secure £23m to level up Rutland and Melton
Deliver the Melton Bypass
Secure a New GP Practice for Melton
Secure a Rural Crime Team
Change the law so Rutland received Flood Recovery Grants
Campaign against the Mallard Pass solar farm proposals
Save five community buildings
Secure national protections for agricultural land and food security
Ended the scandal of lone births during the pandemic
Deliver a ban on hare-coursing
Increase fines for fly-tipping
These are just a few of the things I have delivered during the past four years whilst supporting over 30,000 residents in need of help. At heart I am a campaigner and I know how to make Government work harder for you. I have a proven track record of working tirelessly on behalf of the communities I represent. If you elect me on Thursday 4th July, I will continue to be local, approachable, and hard-working, committed to representing our communities across Rutland, Stamford, the Harborough and South Kesteven villages.
Dr James Moore – Liberal Democrat
“After the stunning Liberal Democrat successes in last year’s local council elections, the Liberal Democrats are now in a great position to win the parliamentary seat this time.
“It is time for change locally and nationally. We need to rebuild confidence in Britain’s economy and tackle the cost-of-living crisis. We need to address the problems in our neglected public services, improve access to local NHS GPs and dentists, and restore local community policing.
“Liberal Democrats now lead two of the three district-level councils in our constituency and are joint leaders of the third. With the collapse in Conservative support, we are many people’s favourites to take the parliamentary seat this time.
“I’ll be an MP that fights for our area, our country towns and our rural communities. I’ll speak out against the government’s financial squeeze on our local councils which pushes up our council tax every year. I’ll fight to tackle the problems of flooding and river pollution that affect our local villages. And I’ll be a strong voice for the armed forces communities in our area.”
Dr Moore is a lecturer in the School of History, Politics and International Relations at the University of Leicester. Educated at Christ Church, Oxford and the University of Manchester, James has written extensively on British politics. Outside of public life, James is a close follower of National Hunt racing and plays football and cricket for his local village club in Barrowden, Rutland.
Joe Wood - Labour
I grew up in rural South Wales, assisting my grandfather on his sheep and dairy farm.
After a youth scheme in Chile, I pursued a career in wildlife conservation, earning a master's degree and establishing my own business in 2009. I conducted research for conservation NGOs, advised on energy reduction for commercial clients. I was also director of a company advising the financial services industry on ethical investment opportunities, and educated on environmental issues overseas.
Family time with my wife and son is precious and I serve as a trustee at the James Brindley Academy for children with autism and mental health challenges.
I’ve worked and lived ‘in the real world’ and want my background, qualifications and experience to serve the people of Rutland & Stamford. Parliament lacks MPs with genuine experience of issues facing people in rural communities. As a child I witnessed my mother crying with the stress of finding money for rent, food and heating.
Parliament lacks MPs with scientific training – understanding climate, nature and farming. I want to reform planning to safeguard our countryside from unsustainable development, protect local services and amenities. My background in conservation is key in this, but it’s only one local issue I will champion.
As a rural constituency we have experienced some of the greatest Government funding cuts. My promise, is to work with central and local government to bring about genuine levelling up. I promise no magic fixes, only better choices. I’d be honoured if you vote for me.
