There were some high-profile political resignations this year - Ed Miliband springs to mind, along with Nick Clegg and, for a brief moment, Nigel Farage. But a number of other leave-takers may have escaped your notice, possibly because you’d never heard of them in the first place. Here, then is a brief guide to the more obscure resignations of 2015.
Emma Reynolds, Labour
Reynolds took on the role of shadow secretary of state for communities and local government in May after Labour’s disastrous election. It turned out to be a bit of a summer job – she quit the day Jeremy Corbyn won.
Likely to be heard of again? Quite possibly. You can’t predict anything about the future of the Labour party at the moment.
Geoffrey Cox, Conservative
The Tory MP resigned from the parliamentary standards committee after he failed to declare £325k of outside income within the 28-day notification limit. Cox, a barrister, is one of parliament’s biggest earners: in 2014 he declared a total of £820,867.
Likely to be heard of again? Not unless you find yourself in need of a really expensive barrister.
Lord Sewel, Labour
The Labour peer terminated his membership of the House of Lords after he was filmed taking cocaine in the company of prostitutes. Expelling him might have been a long and tiresome process, but fortunately Sewel decided that he could “best serve the house by leaving it”.
Likely to be heard of again? The prostitutes and cocaine thing was probably the most famous thing he’ll ever be involved in.
Lord Warner, Labour
A former health minister in Tony Blair’s government, Warner resigned the whip in October, saying Labour was “no longer a credible party” under Jeremy Corbyn.
Likely to be heard of again? Not really. As John Prescott tweeted: “Lord Warner. A minister you’ve never heard of who wanted to charge people £10 a month to use the NHS. No credibility. No great loss.”
Lord Grabiner, Labour
He followed Lord Warner’s lead a few days later, saying his resignation was a matter of conscience. Turned out he hasn’t voted in the Lords since 2013 anyway.
Likely to be heard of again? He’s still a Labour member and he’s still in the Lords, sitting as a crossbencher. So, no.
Garry Burchett
The chairman of the Aberconwy Conservative Association stepped down after an email exchange came to light detailing his lack of support for – and evident dislike of – local MP Guto Bebb.
Likely to be heard of again? Probably not. Guto Bebb, on the other hand, has a name nobody who hears it will forget in a hurry.
