Wycombe MP Conservative Steve Baker 'a free man' after losing his seat after 14 years

Wycombe MP Conservative Steve Baker has lost his seat after 14 years in power to Labour candidate Emma Reynolds.

Tory Northern Ireland minister Steve Baker said “thank God I’m a free man” after he was defeated in the early hours of Friday, July 5.

The results came in around 7.30am where Ms Reynolds, of Holmer Green, was announced as the winner in the general election contest.

Ms Reynolds garnered 16,035 votes, while Mr Baker took 11,444 and Reform UK’s Richard Phoenix finished third on 4,769.

Mr Baker, who has represented Wycombe since he was elected back in 2010 and has been a prominent figure in recent years in national politics, said he would now be able to resume his life.

Speaking to the Free Press, Mr Baker said he was concerned about the incoming Labour government after Keir Starmer’s party won a landslide majority in this election.

He said: “I feel very sad for our country because Labour are going to do a terrible job. If I thought otherwise, obviously I’d be in the Labour Party.

“They don’t know how to cope at all with the institutional reform and they certainly don’t know how to sort out the public finances.”

He also paid tribute to his staffers, who he said had a done a ‘fantastic job’ but who would now be made redundant.

The outgoing MP added: “Thank God I’m free. It’s been a long 14 years and I am not sorry to lose.”

Asked what he would do next, Baker said he would ‘go skydiving on Saturday’ and that he was going ‘riding round Scotland with an old friend in September’.

He added: “I’ve got 30 years’ experience, leadership experience in the armed forces, in the private sector, in Parliament and in Government.

“I am former charted aerospace engineer with an MSC in computer science. I think I am going to be able to work something out.”

Toni Brodelle finished fourth in Wycombe with 4,236 votes, followed by Khalil Ahmed (Workers Party of Britain) with 3,344, Catherine Bunting (Green Party) with 2,193, Ajaz Rehman (Independent) with 1,913, Ed Gemmell (Climate Party) with 489 and Mark Smallwood with 214.

Speaking to the BBC later, Mr Baker echoed his comments that he was glad to have not been re-elected.

He said that it had been a privilege to be an MP, but politicians now suffered lots of abuse and his house is now "like Fort Knox”.

“I will not be coming back, you can have that as an exclusive,” he told BBC Radio 4's Today programme.

The self-styled “Brexit hardman" said: “I fought this to win it and I wanted to do my duty and continue. But I am today, thank God, a free man.

“Try being elected to Parliament and you’ll understand. I am able now to resume my life and that is going to be a great blessing to me.

“So I’m afraid I will be honest with the public. Thank God I’m a free man.”