A Midland MP who is quitting after only one term has spoken in the Commons on just five occasions this year.
Chris Kelly stunned colleagues by announcing he is to stand down at the 2015 General Election after becoming MP for Dudley South in 2010.
The first that local Conservatives knew about the announcement was when he posted it to his Facebook page.
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The euro-sceptic MP had also praised Douglas Carswell, a fellow Conservative who was MP for Clacton in Essex before announcing his defection to 海角视频IP.
Mr Kelly has rarely featured in Commons debates this year. He spoke in the house on January 28, when he questioned George Osborne, the Chancellor and praised the Government’s “long-term economic plan”.
Later that same day he spoke in support of the Government’s Consumer Rights Bill. On March 20 he spoke in a debate about the Budget. And on April 2 he asked the Prime Minister a question about tax allowances for manufacturers.
He rose to ironic cheers from the Labour benches in the House of Commons on Wednesday to speak during Prime Ministers Questions – urging that British-born jihadis should be rendered stateless. His career as an MP has not been without its challenges, In 2011, after he rebelled against the Government in a vote on the European Union, a colleague told journalists he had been reduced to tears by a telling off from the Prime Minister.
It also means he has no chance of cashing in a bet placed back when he was a student, when he wagered £50 he would become Prime Minister before 2038. William Hill accepted the bet at odds of 10,000/1. Mr Kelly, aged 36, is the third Midland Conservative to desert the party after just one term in office.
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Aidan Burley, MP for Cannock Chase in Staffordshire, and Dan Byles, MP for North Warwickshire, have also announced they will not be standing again even though they only became MPs in 2010. Mr Kelly would have been defending a majority of 3,856 in Dudley South if he had stayed on. The MP issued a statement but gave no hint about the reasons for his decision.
He said: “I would like to thank all those who have supported me since I was selected for Dudley South in September 2007. I would especially like to thank all those who voted for me at the general election in May 2010 and all of the friends and supporters who helped me for that election, as well as those who have supported my efforts since.
“I am proud to have served the good people of Dudley South for the past five years.”
Mr Kelly has declined to respond to requests for any further comment. But speaking just before the announcement, he praised Mr Carswell, the former Tory who has forced a by-election in his Clacton seat which threatens to become an embarrassment for David Cameron.
Polls suggest that Mr Carswell, this time standing as a 海角视频IP candidate, could win an overwhelming victory against his Conservative opponent.
Mr Kelly said: “I won’t be joining 海角视频IP, though I wish Douglas Carswell all the best.”
Labour seized on the announcement, saying it was another sign that Tory MPs had lost confidence in Mr Cameron.
Michael Dugher MP, Labour’s Shadow Minister for the Cabinet Office, said: “Another Tory MP is giving up on David Cameron, who can’t even persuade his newest MPs that he has the answers. Confidence in the Prime Minister is collapsing even inside his own party, with MPs formerly loyal to David Cameron throwing in the towel rather than fighting on.”