Newbury Conservative candidate for election Claire Coutinho resigns as Parliamentary Private Secretary

One of the Conservative candidates for Newbury for the 2019 General Election has resigned as a Parliamentary Private Secretary to the Treasury.

Claire Coutinho was one of the three Conservative candidates to replace Richard Benyon, alongside Newbury MP Laura Farris and West Berkshire Council leader Lynne Doherty.

She was beaten to the role by Mrs Farris and was subsequently chosen as the Conservative candidate for East Surrey, and was elected with a majority of 24,040.

She was appointed as a PPS in February 2020, but has now resigned, saying the current crisis was stopping the Government from having a grip on reforming public services.

In a Facebook post, she said it had been a “privilege” to serve and was “proud of many things this Government has done”.

She continued: “I firmly believe that what we need now, as we deal with the twin challenges of war in Europe and global inflation, is a laser-like grip on reforming our public services so that they work better for our constituents and focus on charting a path to prosperity through what is an increasingly challenging global outlook.

“I think the events of recent weeks and months are preventing us from doing that.

“I, of course, look forward to continuing to serve all of you to the best of my abilities.”