North West Norfolk MP James Wild on election strategy, Reform, King’s Lynn hospital and getting the Tories back on top
Imagine there is a general election tomorrow - would residents be backing North West Norfolk MP James Wild for a third term?
You have just picked up your weekly copy of the Lynn News, and on the front page? Side-by-side photos of him and South West Norfolk representative Terry Jermy - an emergency election has been called.
You may weary at the thought of having to cast your vote for a second time in less than two years, but you peek inside anyway and find a number of pre-election campaigns.
Facing off against the fast-growing Reform UK, Liberal Democrats and Green, would the Conservative MP be able to keep hold of his seat?
We put this hypothetical scenario to Mr Wild, who believes the choice would be simple - a “serious” Conservative Party or Labour with “a track record of tax increases, damaging the economy and not listening to rural areas“.
As it was in his 2024 re-election campaign, he says his number one priority would be to deliver the rebuild of Lynn’s Queen Elizabeth Hospital.
But in the past, many have pledged the same thing, so what makes his promise any different?
“People popped up at the last election, who had no background in the area, and said, ‘I’m going to deliver a new hospital’ - but they didn’t even know anything about the details or the plans,” he says.
“They hadn’t worked with the hospital, they hadn’t done any campaigning on it until they came to the election.”
The Tory MP says he did his homework and that he has been the one to speak about the issue the most, as well as driving the Government to put the QEH on the list of those in need.
“I think there’s a credibility gap for candidates who suddenly pop up, who haven’t actually done anything to help secure the hospital,” he adds.
‘MAKING NOISE AND HARRYING MINISTERS’
Hypothetical elections aside, it’s safe to say the saga of the QEH rebuild has loomed over West Norfolk for longer than people would have liked - but with the promises from both MPs piling up, what is actually being done to progress?
When he stood on the podium at Lynnsport after being re-elected last year, Mr Wild pledged to keep fighting for a new hospital to be delivered in Lynn.
More than a year on, £1.5billion has been secured, yet the rebuild has not begun.
The MP says he keeps “banging on” and working with the hospital to push the case. However, nothing can start until cash for a new multi-storey car park is received.
“I’m spending a lot of time with the hospital and with the director of the new hospitals programme, taking their asks to ministers about speeding up the approvals process,” Mr Wild says.
“All I can do is keep making the argument and keep pushing people to try to make this decision.
“This now sits with the Government to approve this funding, so I will keep making noise about it and keep harrying ministers to try and get them to sign off as quickly as possible.”
A PARTY THAT ‘CAME IN WITH NO PLAN’
While he claims efforts are being made to progress the QEH plans, Mr Wild argues there is a Labour Government that is “not listening to local people”.
He admits that during the last general election, people were “dissatisfied” with the Conservatives and therefore looked to the opposition.
“Labour came in clearly with no plan,” he says.
“They thought just because they were Labour, problems would disappear. We’ve seen their record on small boats - it’s absolutely disastrous, this joke of a one-in-one-out deal.
“They haven’t gripped the border issue.”
He highlights other issues with the economy since Labour came into power, such as lower growth and inflation.
“That’s hitting people in the pocket when they go out and do the weekly shop,” Mr Wild adds.
“People are finding things very tough. Bills are going up, and the choices of the Government have made it more difficult for people and taken more of their money away.”
HOW WILL THE TORIES WIN BACK THEIR DISSATISFIED CUSTOMERS?
Labour counterparts would argue that the 14-year Conservative reign caused much of the damage to the economy and essentially left the new Government ‘holding the bag’.
So how can the Tories claw their way back to the top?
“We lost the election because we moved away from our values and principles, and we were putting policies in place that weren’t authentically Conservative,” Mr Wild says.
“It takes a lot of policy work and a lot of thinking about where things went wrong.
“That’s why at our party conference, Kemi Badenoch set out very clearly conservative philosophy and values about how we need as a country to live within our means.
“We’re spending too much, borrowing too much, and we’re about to have another horrendous budget, which is going to lead to lower growth and higher taxes.”
He says his party has now come up with a “serious” plan for the economy and identified £47billion of savings that could be made.”
COULD PEOPLE LOOK TO ANOTHER PARTY, AND IS REFORM REALLY A THREAT?
Mr Wild thinks not.
“Some other parties come up with very thin propositions which, under scrutiny, don’t stand up and are something for the back of a fag packet - we’re not doing that. We’re not coming out with easy answers,” he stresses.
“If you remember, Reform were promising huge spending increases and huge tax cuts at the last election. That wasn’t serious. It wasn’t real.
“They have a tendency to say what they think people want to hear rather than have a credible plan.
“We have to persuade people over the next four years that it’s the Conservatives who are going to be the best option to take this country forward.”
QUICKFIRE QUESTIONS: HOW WELL DO WE KNOW JAMES WILD?
How much do you know about your MP? We asked Mr Wild ten short questions about himself - here’s what he had to say:
• Dream job if you were not an MP? - A journalist
• Favourite football team? - Norwich City
• Alcoholic drink of choice? - “A pint of bitter”
• Favourite pub in Lynn? - The Crown and Mitre
• Bucket list concert? - Oasis: “I missed out on tickets”
• Celebrity crush? - Sophie Ellis-Bextor
• Ideal Christmas gift? - Socks
• An item to bring on a desert island? - One of the Poirot books
• Favourite film? - Top Gun
• A meal to eat for eternity? - Fish and chips