Rantzen confirms ‘political adventure’
By Alex Stevenson
TV presenter Esther Rantzen has confirmed she will challenge Labour in Luton South as an independent candidate.
The I’m A Celebrity. Get Me Out Of Here! star said the public remained angry about MPs’ expenses despite the story having slipped off the front pages in recent weeks.
She told BBC News she had received a positive response from constituents in Luton South and that she preferred their advice over that of “political experts”, who she said had told her “I would be crazy to stand”.
“I’m not for one moment thinking this is going to be easy on any level. No adventure ever is. But if it’s worthwhile achieving I think it’s worth the risk,” she said.
“For me the risk is working very, very hard, having to sacrifice quite a lot of broadcasting opportunities, but at the end of the day having a job which I think is one of the most important jobs you can do in Britain.”
Ms Rantzen, 69, is best known for presenting magazine programme That’s Life! and as a founder of charity ChildLine.
But she caught the headlines at the height of the expenses scandal when she revealed she was considering standing against Labour MP Margaret Moran in Luton South.
The Daily Telegraph newspaper reported the former minister had expensed over £22,000 on treating dry rot at her seaside home 100 miles from her constituency.
Since then she has announced she intends to stand down as an MP at the next election. Ms Rantzen acknowledged not having her to campaign against would make her task harder, but said her action could help encourage others to come forward.
“There may well be other independent candidates coming forward now, taking advantage of a new wind blowing through the world of politics and maybe bringing some fresh air with it,” she added.
Ms Rantzen said she was prepared for the prospect of failure after her previous experiences in the glare of the television cameras.
“I’m old enough, ugly enough, tough enough to stand a bit of humiliation. I’ve been in a jungle in a coffin strewn with earwigs,” she pointed out.
