'Absolute privilege and honour' - Hartlepool's first female MP Jill Mortimer reacts following her General Election defeat

Hartlepool’s now-former Conservative MP has voiced her concerns over the “very, very toxic environment” for politicians and their families nationally.

Jill Mortimer, who held the MP position following her historic 2021 Hartlepool parliamentary by-election victory, was unsuccessful in being re-elected in the 2024 General Election.

She finished third behind new Hartlepool MP, Labour’s Jonathan Brash, and Reform UK candidate Amanda Napper.

In an interview after results were announced, Mrs Mortimer said tides had changed nationally and, although she was sad, she was “more sad for the good colleagues that I’ve seen washed away”.

She described it as “the absolute privilege and honour” of her life to serve as Hartlepool MP although she also raised worries that “politics has become a very, very toxic environment for MPs and their families”.

She continued: “It’s not just social media, social media is a tiny part of it for the abuse, you get the actual death threats and things coming in.

“I think what we all need to do, every politician in the land needs to work very hard, every media outlet, everybody who sits behind a keyboard, we’ve got to work very hard to stop this narrative and this attacking MPs.

“That toxicity is meaning that good people will not put their heads above the parapet and come and do this job for others, why would they?”

She added it would stop women in particular from coming forward to be candidates.

Mrs Mortimer raised similar worries in her speech on the podium at Mill House Leisure Centre after the results were confirmed.

She thanked her husband and children who lived “with the threats and abuse we have all had against us because of the public service I had chosen to do”.

She added they also lived with “the fear that one day they would be the ones receiving the phone call that every MP’s family dreads.”

As part of her speech Mrs Mortimer also paid tribute to the “warm and generous people of Hartlepool” who supported her and added she intends to be “part of Hartlepool’s story moving forward”.

Labour had held the parliamentary position in the town for 57 years prior to Mrs Mortimer’s success three years ago, which saw her become the first Conservative MP to serve the town since naval hero Commander John Kerans.