THE MP for Salisbury and South Wiltshire has told voters that they 'may not like him' but that he intends to be there for them.
He also promised to be accessible and accountable.
MP John Glen said: “In this system, you have got an individual, you may not like me, but you have got me, and you can identify me, you can lobby me, you can come and see me or criticise me, and write as many letters as you like but at the end of the day, I am accountable.
“I know some people don’t vote for me, but we still engage on meaningful issues and there is an understanding that I am there for them. Some people say I have always voted for you, but I treat people the same even if they come in here with a communist supporting T-shirt, it doesn’t matter.
“Politics is about working with principles and realities, and if I did everything on a categorical black and white principle, I wouldn’t be able to solve some of the big pressing challenges we face. Politics has to work in shades of grey, but you need to hold on to the core values you have.
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“I have got responsibilities to lead narratives in a measured and sensible way and sadly, there have been seasons over the last six years, where we have seen a polarisation of language which has been unwelcome and it doesn’t help.”
Mr Glen has been serving as a Member of Parliament for Salisbury and South Wiltshire since 2010 and was promoted to Minister of State during the September 2021 reshuffle.
He was economic secretary to the Treasury and City Minister with the responsibility of banking and financial services from 2018 to when he resigned in July 2022.
He said that over the years he has learnt to moderate the way he deals with issues in order to get things done properly.
He added: “I have learned to be more measured in the way that I approach these things, and to some people that might be too wishy washy, if I don’t speak in a moderate manner and in a careful tone, what hope have we got?”
Mr Glen was speaking in an interview where Salisbury Journal readers' questions were put to him. Read his full answers here.
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