FISHPONDS will have a new MP after next month’s general election.
The election will be fought along new constituency boundaries, which means the Eastville, Frome Vale and Hillfields wards that make up the Fishponds area will be part of a new constituency, Bristol North East.
The borders of previous MP Kerry McCarthy’s Bristol East constituency are moving to the south and west.
Ms McCarthy has thanked the constituents she is losing in the area, saying: “It’s been a pleasure and a privilege to represent you all this time, and I’m sad to be saying goodbye.”
Labour will be the favourites to win the new seat.
In last month’s local elections, the party won four out of the eight seats in the four wards – Eastville, Frome Vale, Hillfields and Lockleaze – that form the Bristol part of the constituency, as well as all nine council seats in its four South Gloucestershire wards in 2023.
Their candidate is Damien Egan, who grew up in Kingswood, Fishponds and Staple Hill, and won the Kingswood by-election for Labour in February, overturning an 11,000 Conservative majority after the resignation of former energy minister Chris Skidmore.
As well as winning Kingswood in 2019, the Conservatives were second in Bristol East. Their candidate is Rose Hulse, an American-born entrepreneur who worked on Republican political campaigns in the US and founded a TV streaming start-up business after moving to the UK.
Green Eastville ward city councillor Lorraine Francis is her party’s candidate for Bristol North East. Re-elected to the council for a second term last month, the social worker is the chair of the council’s new adult social care committee.
The Liberal Democrats have selected Louise Harris, who grew up in the constituency and attended Chester Park and Rodway schools. She works in the voluntary sector and is a cabinet member for the climate and nature emergency on South Gloucestershire Council.
Reform UK has selected 20-year-old Matthew Bamford as its candidate. Matthew has not supplied any other biographical details to the Voice.
Also standing is Tommy Trueman of the Social Democratic Party (SDP). Tommy is a self-employed cabinetmaker who lives in Fishponds and works throughout Bristol. He stood in the Frome Vale ward in last month’s city council elections.
More candidates could yet come forward by the time nominations close at 4pm on June 7.
Picture: Top row, left to right: Matthew Bamford, Damien Egan, Lorraine Francis. Bottom row: Louise Harris, Rose Hulse, Tommy Trueman.