A CONSERVATIVE Party candidate is to be adopted later this year to contest the Tiverton and Minehead constituency at the next General Election.

Paul Osman, chairman of the Conservative association for the constituency, which covers West Somerset, parts of the Blackdown Hills and Mid Devon, and parishes surrounding Wellington, said it meant there was only a narrow window for people who wanted to have a vote in the adoption process.

Mr Osman said a members-only hustings would be held later this year to select a prospective Parliamentary candidate.

He said under Conservative Party rules, people needed to have held membership for at least three months before the hustings in order to be eligible to vote.

The constituency was newly created for the 2024 election and is currently held by the Liberal Democrats with one of their smallest majorities in the country.

Mr Osman said it was one of the ‘most realistically winnable seats’ in the Westcountry for the Conservatives at the next election.

The Lib Dem majority of 3,507 over former Conservative MP Ian Liddell-Grainger was achieved as nearly 8,000 people voted for Reform UK.

Mr Osman said: “This is a genuine opportunity for local people to shape who represents them.

“Our hustings will give every eligible member a direct vote.

“A proper contest decided by the people who live and work in this constituency.

“I would warmly encourage anybody who shares our values to join now, meet the candidates, and have their say.

“Liberal Democrats have voted with the Labour Government on a series of measures opposed by many who live and work in Tiverton and Minehead.

“These include the ‘Clean Heat Market Mechanism’, which critics warn will increase the cost of oil boilers, and the ‘Renters' Rights Act’, which opponents argue will drive up costs for both tenants and landlords.”