THE Prime Minister has described the Conservative candidate for Romsey and Southampton North as 'an incredible champion for her local community' on the day before the General Election.
Rishi Sunak visited Braishfield Primary School today to throw his support behind Caroline Nokes, who has been the MP for 14 years.
The Prime Minister made putty pizzas with reception class children. He rolled balls of the clay dough to add to the slice he and a young girl had made, which he described as pepperoni.
“That’s my favourite pizza,” Mr Sunak said. The pupil said the sale price of the pizza was £5 when asked, with the Prime Minister replying: “£5? This is a gourmet pizza.”
Outside the school, a group of Liberal Democrat activists, including borough councillor for Braishfield Sally Yalden and Mayor of Romsey John Parker, gathered with orange diamond shaped placards for the Prime Minister’s arrival.
Mr Sunak said: “Hampshire has one of the highest proportion of female MPs that we have anywhere in the country like fantastic candidates like Caroline who is a good friend of mine. Caroline is an incredible champion for her local community, you can't move in this part of the world without people knowing who Caroline is.
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“I'm very confident that she will continue to be a local champion after the election. Tomorrow everyone's vote can make a difference, not just to get Caroline back in Parliament, but to have your tax cut and pension protected while borders are secure and prevent a Labour super-majority.
“Caroline knows her community inside out, she is a very powerful voice for them and she has years of experience doing this. Whatever people might think about national politics and what has happened in the last few years, nobody here doubts that in Caroline they have someone who works their socks off and understands their concerns and makes a major difference in their lives and I hope everyone will support her.”
Ms Nokes said: “I always wondered if he wanted to come home on the last day of the campaign. Braishfield Primary School is a fantastic local school with such engaged, bright children. I've had them up to parliament a couple of times. It's a real joy to be able to take the Prime Minister to be able to see local children who were so excited to meet him.”
She added: “The campaign has been very long. The name and face recognition in this constituency is off the charts. However people feel about politics they know I work really hard for Romsey and Southampton North. They know I have not been afraid to champion issues that matter to them. Sometimes I have even done that when it has cost me my own career. I'm feeling positive about the campaign and, you know what, if I lose, I lose and I will go down with my head held high and knowing that I have worked my socks off for the people of Romsey and Southampton North for a very long time.
"It looks, if the polls are to be believed, that there will be a Labour majority come Friday. The result here is not going to impact the result of the General Election. The result here is about if people want an MP with a proven track record of working hard and standing up for what is right. Above all else, this is home, I live here. The concerns my constituents have are the same concerns I have. There is nothing more important to me that representing the constituency that has always been home.”
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