Johnny Mercer to resign from next election, blaming malfeasance, after revealing voter’s appalling comment to daughter

Veterans Affairs Minister Johnny Mercer has said this will be his last election campaign due to the abuse his family has suffered – including a recent incident in which a man told his daughter: “That’s your daddy’s crap”.

The Conservative Party candidate for Plymouth Moor View is the latest politician to open up about harassment and threats, revealing that despite his passion for the job, he feels exhausted. The 42-year-old won the seat from the Labor Party in 2015, and in the next two elections he increased his majority to almost 13,000 votes.

After three tours of duty in Afghanistan, Mr Mercer said he had entered politics to speak out for veterans and the city he described as the “Jewel of the South West”. And despite “ups and downs” in government – ​​he was twice sacked as Veterans Secretary before his final term under Rishi Sunak – Mr Mercer was “extremely proud” of what he had achieved.

However, he said the abuse against him and his family had gone too far and that if he were elected for a fourth consecutive term, it would be his last.

He revealed his decision Independent after police were called to reports of a man allegedly filming him in a public place with his three-year-old daughter before telling her: “Your father is an a**.”

Earlier this month, a man appeared in court accused of sending a “grossly offensive” email to Mr Mercer in connection with a separate incident expected to begin in 2025. And four years ago, his wife, Felicity Cornelius-Mercer, was sent a diaper. in the post.

Asked whether this would be his last term if he wins the election, Mr Mercer told The Independent while canvassing in Plymouth: “Yes. I think (being an MP) has its consequences. When you’re in the army and you’re fighting, it’s really weird, but people say that courage is like a bank account and you feel it go down. Once you spend it, there is nothing you can do to get it back.

“I remember after my last tour in 2010 I was like, ‘Wow, I’m emptying my bank account here.’

“I think it’s the same with violence, you can take it, take it, take it again. But when I experienced violence, like when someone told my three-year-old daughter to her face her ‘daddy behavior,’ I said, ‘You know what, I could just go and hire private sector.’ Work, take care of the kids, mow the lawn.”

He added: “That’s why (the abuse) I love all of this… but I’m not going to tolerate it for another 20 years.”

Two years ago, a BBC investigation found that more than 3,000 offensive tweets were sent to MPs every day, with one in 20 classified as “toxic”. Conservative Member of Parliament and Justice Minister Mike Freer has decided to stand down from this year’s elections after a “continuing string of incidents”, including death threats. Two MPs, David Amess and Jo Cox, have been murdered in the last decade.

Mr Mercer, who moved his family 30 minutes from Plymouth for the safety of his children, said: “It’s a disgrace. You get the politicians you deserve, you get people with rhino skin who don’t give a f**k and will just say yes, whatever… they don’t really believe in anything, they just want to be an MP.”

But despite his concerns, Mr Mercer wants to take the constituency once again, and his promotional leaflet is titled ‘Derriford Hospital Redevelopment in the City’. £180m was secured last year for the first phase of work, but Mr Mercer wants to complete the work, which will cost around £600m.

“I want to deliver this hospital,” Mr Mercer said. “I became an MP because I didn’t like MPs, one of the things we don’t like about them is they promise sh** and don’t deliver.

“So I’ll see it come hell or high water. When I do it, it will be a legacy and I will think: great, I did it, what’s next?”

Also standing for Plymouth Moor View are Shaun Hooper (Reform UK), Sara Martin (Lib Dems), Georgia Nelson (Greens) and Fred Thomas (Labour).