A former Conservative MP who lost his seat in the general election says he cannot find a new job three months after leaving Parliament.
Jonathan Gullis, the former MP for Stoke-on-Trent, is a former teacher but has not been able to find work in teaching since losing his seat.
Speaking to Times Radio at the Conservative Party conference, he said he couldn’t get a job because there are “too many activists in the classroom” preventing him from getting an interview.
Mr Gullis added that the education profession treats Tories “with disdain”.
He also said that being a former MP does not carry the same weight as it used to, with former parliamentarians no longer wanted or desired” and often seen as a “problem.”
Mr Gullis continued: “I’ll be perfectly frank with you when I entered teaching it was always slightly more centre-left leaning but I always felt that it was fair.
“When I left the profession to enter Parliament I felt that being a Conservative was something that was treated with disdain, and I do think there are a lot of schools that will see who I used to represent, and maybe my views which they may not like, and because of that – not because of what I can do as a teacher – but because of that I won’t even be given an interview.
“I think that’s a damning indictment on the profession that I do love and do care about but sadly if you’re going to have too many activists in the classroom, which I do think we have at this time, then politics is going to sadly determine who’s allowed to work in that profession which is not good for pupils, it’s not good for parents, but particularly pupils because they need teachers to be coming to deliver high-quality education.
“Not pursuing the very woke agenda that sadly has entrenched many of our education sectors.”
Mr Gullis was a vocal Brexiteer during his time in Parliament, as well as being outspoken on issues such as immigration.