Terry Jermy | |
|---|---|
 Official portrait, 2024 | |
| Member of Parliament forSouth West Norfolk | |
| Assumed office 4 July 2024 | |
| Preceded by | Liz Truss |
| Majority | 630 (1.4%) |
| Mayor ofThetford | |
| In office 10 May 2016 – 9 May 2017 | |
| Deputy | Denis Crawford |
| Preceded by | Robert Kybird |
| Succeeded by | Denis Crawford |
| Norfolk County Councillor forThetford West | |
| In office 2 August 2013 – 11 March 2025 | |
| Preceded by | Peter Georgiou |
| Succeeded by | David Bick |
| Breckland District Councillor forThetford Priory Thetford Burrell (2015–2023) Thetford Saxon (2011–2015) | |
| In office 12 May 2011 – 11 March 2025 | |
| Preceded by | Pat Balaam |
| Succeeded by | Michael Westman |
| Thetford Town Councillor for Priory Burrell (2015–2023) Saxon (2008–2015) | |
| In office July 2008 – 2023 | |
| Preceded by | Gareth Pickering |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Terry James Jermy August 1985 (age 40) |
| Party | Labour |
| Education | Charles Burrell Humanities School City College Norwich |
| Website | terryjermy |
Terry James Jermy (born August 1985) is a British politician and journalist who has been theMember of Parliament (MP) forSouth West Norfolk since2024.[1] A member of theLabour Party, hedefeated formerprime ministerLiz Truss, who had represented the constituency since2010.[2] Prior to becoming an MP, Jermy had also previously served on theNorfolk County Council,Breckland District Council andThetford Town Council.
Jermy was born in August 1985 inThetford,Norfolk.[3][4] His father, Trevor, was awelder fabricator.[5] Jermy attendedCharles Burrell Humanities School andCity College Norwich.[6] He bought theAbout Thetford magazine from its previous owners in 2014 and served as its editor until his election to parliament, though he remains its owner.[7][8]
In July 2008, Jermy was elected as aLabour Party councillor for Saxon ward (renamed Burrell ward in 2015) in aThetford Town Council by-election.[6] He was re-elected to the town council in 2011.[9] That same year, Jermy waselected as a Labour councillor for the Thetford Saxon ward on theBreckland District Council.[10] In the2013 Norfolk County Council election, Jermy stood as the Labour candidate for Thetford West, finishing in second place behindUKIP candidate Peter Georgiou by only one vote.[11] However, Georgiou resigned weeks later due toshoplifting accusations and Jermy won the seat in the August 2013 by-election.[12][13]
He was re-elected to his now-renamed Thetford Burrell seat in the2015 Breckland District Council election.[14] In May 2016, he was appointed Mayor of Thetford on a one-year term, becoming the first openlygay mayor of the town.[15][16] He was succeeded as mayor by his deputy, UKIP councillor Denis Crawford, in May 2017.[17] Jermy retained his Thetford West seat in the2017 Norfolk County Council election.[18] He was re-elected to both the district council and the town council in2019.[19][20] In the2021 Norfolk County Council election, Jermy held his Thetford West seat.[21]
In2023, Jermy was re-elected to the district council, now for Thetford Priory ward, and the town council, now for Priory ward.[22][23] In February 2024, he was selected as the Labour candidate forSouth West Norfolk in the2024 general election.[24] He received little support from the national Labour Party campaign and had to raise £15,000 for his local campaign viacrowdfunding.[25] Hewon the seat in the general election with a majority of 630 votes and just over a quarter of the votes cast (26.7%), which was the lowest winning vote share in the general election.[1][26] By winning the seat, Jermy unseated formerConservativeprime ministerLiz Truss, who had represented the seat since2010, and became the first Labour MP for the constituency sinceAlbert Hilton, who lost the seat in1964.The Spectator labelled Jermy's victory "thePortillo moment of 2024".[27]
Jermy resigned from his county and district council positions in March 2025, but remains a town councillor.[28]
Jermy isgay.[16] His father, Trevor, died on 29 January 2023, aged 65, fromstroke complications while in amedically-induced coma atWest Suffolk Hospital.[5] Jermy was inspired by his father's death to run for a parliamentary seat.[29]
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Labour | Terry Jermy | 11,847 | 26.7 | +8.4 | |
| Conservative | Liz Truss | 11,217 | 25.3 | –43.4 | |
| Reform | Toby McKenzie | 9,958 | 22.4 | New | |
| Independent | James Bagge | 6,282 | 14.2 | New | |
| Liberal Democrats | Josie Ratcliffe | 2,618 | 5.9 | −2.4 | |
| Green | Pallavi Devulapalli | 1,838 | 4.1 | +1.1 | |
| Monster Raving Loony | Earl Elvis of East Anglia | 338 | 0.8 | −0.9 | |
| Heritage | Gary Conway | 160 | 0.4 | New | |
| Communist | Lorraine Douglas | 77 | 0.2 | New | |
| Majority | 630 | 1.4 | |||
| Turnout | 44,335 | 59.3 | –6.3 | ||
| Labourgain fromConservative | Swing | +25.8 | |||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Labour Co-op | Terry Jermy | 1,204 | 56.9 | +5.4 | |
| Conservative | Barbara Tullett | 720 | 34.0 | +0.8 | |
| Liberal Democrats | Martin Callam | 101 | 4.8 | New | |
| Independent | Philip Wagstaff | 91 | 4.3 | New | |
| Majority | 484 | 22.9 | +4.6 | ||
| Turnout | 2,137 | 22.2 | –4.7 | ||
| Labour Co-ophold | Swing | +2.3 | |||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Labour | Terry Jermy | 1,323 | 51.5 | +16.2 | |
| Conservative | Jane James | 853 | 33.2 | +17.9 | |
| UKIP | John Newton | 392 | 15.3 | −20.1 | |
| Majority | 470 | 18.3 | +18.3 | ||
| Turnout | 2,568 | 26.8 | +3.0 | ||
| Labourhold | Swing | +18.2 | |||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Labour | Terry Jermy | 1,071 | |||
| UKIP | John Newton | 900 | |||
| Conservative | Tristan Ashby | 282 | |||
| Independent | Daniel Jeffrey | 78 | |||
| Green | Sandra Walmsley | 40 | |||
| Majority | 171 | ||||
| Turnout | 2,371 | 24.6 | |||
| Labourgain fromUKIP | |||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UKIP | Peter Georgiou | 814 | 35.4 | New | |
| Labour | Terry Jermy | 813 | 35.4 | +7.4 | |
| Conservative | Tristan Ashby | 353 | 15.4 | −19.6 | |
| CPA | Carl Clark | 134 | 5.8 | New | |
| Liberal Democrats | Daniel Jeffrey | 122 | 5.3 | −31.7 | |
| Green | Sandra Walmsley | 64 | 2.8 | New | |
| Majority | 1 | 0.0 | |||
| Turnout | 2,300 | 23.8 | −3.7 | ||
| UKIPgain fromLiberal Democrats | Swing | +33.6 | |||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Labour | Terry Jermy | 629 | 56.6 | +19.1 | |
| Labour | Mike Brindle | 551 | 49.6 | +4.8 | |
| Independent | Ron Wood | 320 | 28.8 | New | |
| No description | Gordon Margrie | 200 | 18.0 | New | |
| No description | Mark Taylor | 199 | 17.9 | New | |
| Turnout | 1,136 | 22.8 | |||
| Labourhold | |||||
| Labourhold | |||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Labour | Terry Jermy | 507 | 47.3 | ||
| Labour | Chris Harvey | 400 | 37.3 | ||
| UKIP | Denis Crawford | 236 | 22.0 | ||
| Independent | Carla Barreto | 233 | 21.8 | New | |
| Conservative | Mia Browne | 205 | 19.1 | ||
| Conservative | Jason Smith | 188 | 17.6 | ||
| Turnout | 1,092 | 26.2 | |||
| Labourhold | |||||
| Labourgain fromUKIP | |||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Labour | Terry Jermy | 905 | 39.5 | ||
| UKIP | Denis Crawford | 828 | 36.2 | ||
| Labour | Sadie Harvey | 680 | |||
| Conservative | Gloria-Jean Bamber | 557 | 24.3 | ||
| Conservative | Louise Sharman | 447 | |||
| Turnout | 49.1 | ||||
| Labourhold | |||||
| UKIPgain fromLabour | |||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Labour | Terry Jermy | 659 | 34.4 | ||
| Labour | Sylvia Armes | 528 | |||
| Conservative | Mark Robinson | 409 | 21.3 | ||
| Labour | Yvonne Rout | 399 | |||
| Conservative | Marion Chapman-Allen | 397 | |||
| UKIP | Denis Crawford | 388 | 20.2 | ||
| Conservative | Paul Kybird | 383 | |||
| Independent | Bob Waple | 315 | |||
| Green | Sandra Walmsley | 146 | |||
| Turnout | 3,624 | ||||
| Labourhold | |||||
| Labourgain fromConservative | |||||
| Conservativehold | |||||
| Parliament of the United Kingdom | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Member of Parliament forSouth West Norfolk 2024–present | Incumbent |
| Political offices | ||
| Preceded by Peter Georgiou | Norfolk County Councillor for Thetford West 2013–2025 | Succeeded by Michael Westman |
| Preceded by Pat Balaam | Breckland District Councillor for Thetford Priory formerly Thetford Burrell (2015–2023) and Thetford Saxon (2011–2015) 2011–2025 | Succeeded by Michael Westman |
| Preceded by Gareth Pickering | Thetford Town Councillor for Priory formerly Burrell (2015–2023) and Saxon (2008–2015) 2008–present | Incumbent |
