Richard Bacon to stand down as South Norfolk MP

Richard Bacon is Norfolk's longest serving MP, having been elected since 2001

Richard Bacon, the MP for South Norfolk, has announced he will stand down at the next election.

It comes months after local Conservative party members indicated they did not want him to stand again and some criticised him for not being "visible" enough.

Mr Bacon told community station Park Radio it was "time to give someone a chance, there's a lot more I want to do".

He has held the seat since 2001.

The discontent reported within the local party followed complaints from some members and constituents that Mr Bacon was hard to reach and did not show much interest in local issues - claims he has always denied.

Mr Bacon, 60, who won the last election with a majority of 21,275, has recently promoted the idea of self-build housing and spoken out against plans for a new chain of pylons stretching from Norfolk to Essex.

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