Clacton by-election tests voter priorities on NHS, immigration and tax

Clacton will elect a new MP on Thursday after Nigel Farage resigned his seat, prompting a by-election with the largest number of candidates in British electoral history. The Essex constituency, which includes Jaywick, Frinton and Walton-on-the-Naze, has voted six times in the past 12 years.

Farage stepped down following an investigation into his finances, which he denies were improper. He said voters should judge his actions. The ballot paper will list 34 candidates, the most ever for a UK parliamentary election.

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NHS delays and immigration dominate conversations

Residents told the BBC that NHS waiting times and immigration control are top concerns. Debbie Parmenter, who moved from Hornchurch last month, described waiting overnight in a hospital corridor with her son. "They just seemed completely overwhelmed," she said.

Her husband, Pete Parmenter, said immigration should be better controlled. "It’s not ‘kick all the immigrants out’, but let’s get a little bit more control of it," he said. Taxi driver Clyde Ellis-Hall agreed, saying he wanted Britain to remain culturally unchanged for future generations.

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Small businesses call for VAT cuts

Glenn White, who runs a pie and mash shop in Clacton, said VAT at 20% makes running a small business harder. He wants the rate reduced to 5%, as it was during the Covid pandemic. "Government take over £1 for a meal in tax," he said. "That’s my main gripe."

White compared the UK unfavourably to France, where restaurants pay 10% VAT on non-alcoholic sales. He said French towns have better-maintained streets and fewer potholes, suggesting UK taxes are not reinvested locally.

Social care sector says it is overlooked

Rahul Jagota, who runs a Clacton care home, said social care is the area’s largest employer but is rarely mentioned by candidates. The sector employs 4,500 people in the constituency. "We need our leaders to speak about it," he said. "It’s the most important economy in the area."

Jagota said 40% of his staff come from abroad. Without foreign recruitment, he said, the sector would face severe staff shortages. The Office for National Statistics reports that one in four residents in Clacton has a disability, compared to 17% across England.

The constituency has a higher proportion of elderly and disabled residents than the national average. A third of working-age people are economically inactive, compared to fewer than one in five in the East of England. Twenty per cent of neighbourhoods in Tendring district are highly deprived, most around Clacton and Jaywick.

What happens next

Polling stations will open at 07:00 BST on Thursday and close at 22:00 BST. The result is expected in the early hours of Friday. The winner will serve until the next general election, which must be held by January 2025.