'I'm gonna fight like hell to keep it': Johnny Mercer on his fight for Plymouth Moor View

• Lucy McDaid reports on the 'fight' for Plymouth Moor View

Veterans' Minister Johnny Mercer has said he will "fight like hell" for re-election as the MP for Plymouth Moor View, as he faces a challenging battle against Labour.

He is the Conservative Party's candidate for the constituency, having represented it in Westminster since 2015. He has served in Cabinet for almost two years.

The people of Plymouth will elect two MPs on 4 July. The city's neighbouring seat, Plymouth Sutton and Devonport, was taken by Labour from the Tories in 2015.

In the same election, former British Army officer, Mr Mercer, won Moor View against the odds and said one of his main missions in Parliament was improving mental health support for veterans. Since then, his majority has grown from 1,026 to 12,897.

Despite a growing personal mandate, Plymouth has been moving in the direction of the Labour Party for some time and Mr Mercer represents a Party that has consistently been at least 20 points behind in the national polls.

In 2023, Labour took control of Plymouth City Council from the Conservatives and this year the Party consolidated its grip on power by unseating even more Tory councillors.

Asked if the numbers show Plymouth is turning Labour, Mr Mercer said: "Of course they do. The numbers are terrible and the polls are terrible from recent elections, but that's not what I'm finding on the doorsteps now.

"I'm in this for the quiet, average person in Plymouth who just wants to get on with their life, a government to leave them alone, and have good, honest representation. That's why I'm doing it."

Mr Mercer's message to voters on the doorstep is that he doesn't want Plymouth to be represented by two Labour MPs, and in a bid to do that he doesn't shy away from honesty when talking about his party's national prospects at this election.

"I believe in what I'm doing. I don't want to see two Labour MPs in Plymouth," he told ITV West Country.

"I think that Plymouth has got an extraordinary potential about it that we're all trying to realise and have been for some time."

Johnny Mercer: 'The polls are terrible...but that's not what I'm finding on the doorstep'

Plymouth is a military city and the two main contenders for the Moor View seat have a history of service.

Former Royal Marine, Fred Thomas, is Labour's hopeful. He is one of more than a dozen ex-military personnel standing for the Party at this general election, as Sir Keir's party tries to boost its security credentials in preparation for what the polls predict will be a Labour government.

"Increasingly we've seen as this election has rolled on, that people are tuning into our offer, what we can change in their lives, and that is landing really strongly," Mr Thomas told ITV West Country.

His message very much mirrors that of his leader, Sir Keir Starmer, with a clear focus on the NHS and the cost of living crisis.

"For us with the NHS, there are huge waiting lists here in Plymouth. We are saying we will come in and create 40,000 extra appointments a year, funded by closing the non-dom tax loopholes that still exist under the Conservatives," said Fred Thomas.

He added: "That is something deliverable that we are offering to do."

Fred Thomas: 'People are tuning into our [Labour's] offer'

The contest between the two former army personnel has been far from controversial, with Mr Mercer recently accusing Mr Thomas of lying about his military service record.

After a local hustings in Plymouth, Mr Mercer claimed his Labour opponent was never "in combat missions", as was reported in the Guardian newspaper in 2023.

Mr Thomas said it was "disappointing" to see "political point-scoring".

When asked if he has deliberately been unclear about his service, he said: "I've always been really clear about the operations I've done. They're very recent, very sensitive, and as my opponent is keenly aware, I cannot talk about them."

Mr Mercer said: "I think integrity is vital in public life... now Labour has changed their tune which is fine, it's not about service, it's about integrity, values, and standards in public life. I respect everybody's service."

A number of polls predict a possible Labour win in Plymouth Moor View, but the contest is much closer than many others between the two main parties at this election.

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