DOMINIC Raab has suggested he may not stand at the general election, telling the BBC he wants to “let the dust settle” before making a decision.
An MP since 2010, Mr Raab barely held his Esher and Walton seat in 2019, as the Liberal Democrats cut his majority from 23,298 to just 2,743.
The knife-edge Surrey marginal is now a prime LibDem target for 2024.
Mr Raab’s refusal to confirm he is standing again in the seat suggests he may be thinking of leaving the Commons or potentially trying to find a safer Tory candidacy elsewhere.
The LibDems demanded a byelection within minutes of Mr Raab resigning over a report into bullying allegations made against him by civil servants in three government departments.
Adam Tolley KC found Mr Raab had been abrasive, intimidating and aggressive to officials.
UK LibDem leader Sir Ed Davey said Mr Raab was “unfit” to remain as MP.
Knocking doors in Esher & Walton with LibDem candidate Monica Harding just hours after Mr Raab quit, he said: “Dominic Raab is not only unfit to be a minister but also a Member of Parliament.
“He should resign and trigger a by-election here in Esher and Walton so his constituents can get the MP they deserve.”
Local voter Lynne Murray, 43, said Mr Raab’s resignation was “disappointing but obviously there are lots of local issues to focus on and to keep him busy up to the next election”.
She said: “You are in a very demanding environment. I understand that standards and tensions are high and that he is under a lot of pressure as people in public life are to deliver.”
Sue Harding, 50, said she had always found her MP to be “an intelligent, principled and considered man.
She said: “I think that what is happening today is some political point-scoring.
“I am not party to what went on and most of us aren’t. It is obviously between the people that have brought the situation against him and him (Mr Raab).
“I think that the media is having a feeding frenzy and I don’t think he is any more of a bully than anybody else who is working in the political environment.
“I think the way the media are having a feeding frenzy on this is potentially devastating for him and his family. I would say that is a bullying situation.”
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