Fred Thomas | |
|---|---|
 Official portrait, 2024 | |
| Member of Parliament forPlymouth Moor View | |
| Assumed office 4 July 2024 | |
| Preceded by | Johnny Mercer |
| Majority | 5,604 (13.1%) |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Frederick Jacob Theseus Thomas 1991 or 1992 (age 33–34) |
| Party | Labour |
| Relatives |
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| Alma mater | King's College London |
| Website | www |
| Military career | |
| Allegiance |  United Kingdom |
| Branch | Royal Marines |
| Service years | 2016–2023 |
| Rank | Captain |
| Service number | 30261385 |
Frederick Jacob Theseus Thomas[1] (born 1991 or 1992)[2] is a BritishLabour Party politician and formerRoyal Marines officer. He has beenMember of Parliament (MP) forPlymouth Moor View since 2024, defeating veterans ministerJohnny Mercer.
Thomas was born to a civil servant and a teacher, and has four siblings.[2] He is a grandson of historianCharles Thomas and writerJessica Mann on his father's side, and a grandson of Christopher Brett, 5thViscount Esher, on his mother's side.[3] He was educated atWinchester College and studied politics, religion and ethics atKing's College London.[2] He learned to read and write inArabic and studied abroad in Egypt shortly after theArab Spring.[2]
Thomas was commissioned in theRoyal Marines on 5 September 2016, and was appointed to the trained strength on 13 December 2018 with the rank oflieutenant.[4] During his career, he trained inArctic warfare and was employed innuclear security atHMNB Clyde.[2][5] He also became the Royal Marines'light heavyweight boxing champion.[2] He was promoted tocaptain on 5 March 2020.[6] He left full-time service in February 2023,[2] and subsequently joined theRoyal Marines Reserve.[7]
Thomas was one of fourteen former services personnel standing as Labour candidates in the2024 general election and stood against Conservative MPJohnny Mercer inPlymouth Moor View.[8][9]
Mercer accused Thomas of exaggerating his military record over a profile in the Guardian newspaper which stated Thomas had told the journalist he had "served in combat missions". Mercer - himself a combat veteran from theWar in Afghanistan - said Thomas had never served in combat, and was wrong to claim he had.Alistair Carns, a decorated former colonel and fellow Labour Party Candidate in the election, defended Thomas by stating that he had served in high-risk areas and that an argument between veterans about their service was not what voters wanted. Alternately,Sir Ben Wallace, theDefence Secretary at the time of the alleged "service in combat" supported Mercer, his fellow Conservative, stating he knew exactly what Thomas had done during his time in the Royal Marines and that Thomas had never served in combat as he claimed.[10][5][11][12][13][14]
Thomas said he couldn’t share details due to the sensitive nature of his work but cited a certificate highlighting his operational experience, however theLabour Party later claimed that Thomas's words had been "misreported" and blamed the journalist for the mistake. They did not clarify why Thomas or the Labour Party had not corrected this mistake for 10 months, even when actively publicising the article.[15][11][16] At the election, Thomas was elected as MP for Plymouth Moor View with 17,665 votes (41.2%), a majority of 5,604 over Mercer.[17][1]
In October 2024, Thomas was elected to theDefence Select Committee[18] and is also co-chair of theAll-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on Defence Technology, which aims to improve understanding of the UK's defence technology sector.[19][20]
Thomas has been a strong advocate of support for Ukraine and in September 2024 visited Kyiv with UK Friends of Ukraine to participate in the Yalta European Strategy Conference.[21]
Thomas has campaigned for a new A&E department atDerriford Hospital in his constituency ofPlymouth Moor View. He wrote toBoris Johnson, asking for an apology for his Government's "broken promises" and has asked the Deputy Prime Minister about Derriford in PMQs, held meetings with Health Ministers, and joined staff on an A&E shift.[22][23][24]
In 2024 Thomas launched the "Football For All" campaign with the Argyle Community Trust,Plymouth Argyle F.C.’s charity, to provide free football for children.[25] He met with officials to push for better funding and hosted a roundtable on improving access to sport.[26][27]
Thomas has taken a keen interest in SEND provision, due to the need for improvements in Plymouth Moor View. Thomas’ first visit as an MP was to Mill Ford special needs school in Plymouth.[28] He spoke in aWestminster Hall debate on SEND provision, asking the Minister to “help expand capacity at Plymouth Moor View’s special schools”.[29]
407 Plymouth Moor View Borough Constituency Frederick Jacob Theseus Thomas
| Parliament of the United Kingdom | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Member of Parliament forPlymouth Moor View 2024–present | Incumbent |
