The UK will go to the polls in July after Rishi Sunak announced the date for the next general election – but scores of high-profile MPs will not be facing the electorate after deciding to stand down.
Housing secretary Michael Gove and former business secretary Andrea Leadsom became the latest Tory MPs to announce they would not contest the next election, as the number of Conservative MPs deciding to stand aside hit a new post-war record. In his letter to constituents, Mr Gove cited the “toll” of public office as he said it was time to let “a new generation lead” following a political career spanning nearly 20 years.
