REVEALED: North Shropshire by-election candidates confirmed

Daubney, who campaigned alongside Nigel Farage for the Brexit Party at the 2019 General Election has put himself forward for the Reclaim Party.

Kirsty Walmsley, the daughter of former Shropshire Council leader Keith Barrow, is the nominee for the Reform Party, which developed from the Brexit Party.

Howling Laud Hope, the co-founder of the Monster Raving Loony Party with Screaming Lord Sutch, has also been nominated.

And so too has a candidate named on the ballot paper as Boris Been-Bunged, standing for Rejon EU.

For the full list of nominees see below.

Conservatives

Neil Shastri-Hurst is former British Army Medical Officer who now works as a barrister from Birmingham.

Dr Shastri-Hurst said his campaign will focus on "building back better" after the pandemic and sustainable agriculture.

“I am thrilled to be selected as the Conservative candidate for North Shropshire,” Dr Shastri-Hurst said.

“I know that there is hard work to be done, but I cannot wait to get out campaigning to get my message out to everyone living and working in the towns and communities across the constituency."

Labour

Ben Wood, from Oswestry, will be the first new Labour candidate for North Shropshire since 2015, replacing Graeme Currie who says he was barred from selection because of historic tweets expressing support for Palestine and former leader Jeremy Corbyn.

Mr Wood, who attended schools in the town, says the election is an opportunity to rid the constituency of 'Tory sleaze'.

He said: "Being Oswestry born-and-bred, I’ve had enough of people taking North Shropshire for granted.

“The closure of local ambulance stations in Market Drayton and Oswestry is just the tip of the iceberg. I’ll be putting forward a new plan with fresh ideas to give our area a brighter future, but I also want to bring a sense of decency back to our politics."

Liberal Democrats

Helen Morgan will once again be standing for the Liberal Democrats, after coming third in 2019, with around five per cent of the overall vote.

She has also put health issues at the top of her agenda, with the closure of ambulances bases in North Shropshire, and says she will fight for a fair deal for farmers.

She added: "Residents have a chance to send a strong message to the Conservatives who’ve taken people around here for granted for decades.

“If elected, I’d fight for investment into our local health services, back our local farmers and end the years of Conservatives taking our area for granted."

The Green Party

Duncan Kerr, a councillor for both Shropshire and Oswestry councils, is once again standing as the candidate for the Greens, following on from his efforts in 2017.

Mr Kerr believes there is a growing support base for a Green Party MP in the area, highlighting their successful local election campaigns in 2021 that saw them add two Shropshire councillors (including himself) and overall control of Oswestry Town Council.

He said: "The Green Party does politics differently. We show that we don’t have to rely on the old, failed parties and our approach has been winning respect and support.

"I am giving a firm promise that if elected I will draw only the UK average wage in remuneration and ask that the rest goes to local charities just as I did with my Mayoral allowance."

Reform UK

Kirsty Walmsley was the first of the candidates to be announced.

A familiar face for Oswestry as the daughter of former Shropshire Council leader and Mr Paterson's former election agent, Keith Barrow, plus current Conservative Shropshire councillor Joyce Barrow.

Party leader Richard Tice said she 'embodied' North Shropshire.

She said: "The reason I have put myself forward to stand as a candidate is because I believe the people of North Shropshire deserve an independent champion who truly knows and cares about the area."

Party Party

Russell Dean, who is originally from Eccleston near Chester but now lives in Monaco working as a yacht broker, is the leader of the Party Party, which he set up in 2013.

Educated at Wrekin College in Wellington, he says he was supported by the required 10 nominations and says he will be opening an election office in Oswestry as soon as he can.

He added: "I will be standing for the Party Party on a platform of anti-sleaze and corruption in Westminster.

"I have worked and lived in Monaco with my family for the past 15 years and I would return to UK if elected to serve the constituency."

The Monster Raving Loony Party

Alan 'Howling Laud' Hope, who is the leader of the Monster Raving Loony Party, will stand for election in North Shropshire on December 16.

He took over the leadership role from its founder, Screaming Lord Sutch after his death in 1999.

Alan previously stood for election in the 2021 Batley and Spen by-election held on July 1.

Independent

Yolande Kenward has confirmed she will be standing in North Shropshire as an independent candidate.

She wrote on Facebook earlier this week: "I am a Justice for All campaigner who emailed [Owen] Paterson in support only of his statement that the Office of the Parliamentary Standards Commissioner is bias and he did not get a fair investigation/hearing."

Reclaim Party

Martin Daubney is a former Brexit Party MEP who has also previously worked for FHM, Loaded and The Sun.

Freedom Alliance The Real Alternative

Earl Elvis Phillippe Jesse is the candidate, giving an address in Newbury, Berkshire.

Ukip

Andrea Christabel-Allen is standing for another party with historic links to Nigel Farage.

Independent

Suzie Akers-Smith, from Congleton in Cheshire, is standing as an independent.

Rejoin EU

The suspiciously-named Boris Been-Bunged, from an address in Wimbledon in south London, is flying the flag for European Union membership.

Heritage Party

James Alexander Elliot from Preston is the candidate for this Eurosceptic party.