A former Tory MP who was facing the prospect of being removed from his seat by voters has announced he is resigning from parliament – triggering another by-election.
Scott Benton, who represents Blackpool South, said it had been “the honour of a lifetime to represent our wonderful Blackpool community in parliament over the last four years”.
“It’s with a heavy heart that I have written to the chancellor this morning to tender my resignation as your MP,” he said in a post on X.
His resignation will trigger a by-election unless Prime Minister Rishi Sunak calls a general election sooner – something that is unlikely after he ruled out holding an election on 2 May and said he is still aiming for the second half of the year.
The by-election will be launched after MPs are asked whether they agree to it, which could be as early as tomorrow, Sky News understands. This means the contest may be held on the same day as the local elections on 2 May.
Mr Benton was elected to the Blackpool South seat in 2019 with a slim majority of 3,690 and Labour would hope to snatch it back in a by-election.
It is one of the “red wall” seats – the traditional Labour areas that switched to Boris Johnson’s Conservatives in 2019.
Mr Benton was facing a recall petition that was due to close on 22 April, after he was suspended from the Commons for 35 days over his role in a lobbying sting.
MPs approved the suspension last month without the need for a vote.
Mr Benton, who has been sitting as an independent, could have been forced out by voters had 10% of his constituents signed the recall petition that was generated following…
