University students claim Conservative MP has failed to raise public interest after taking part in celebrity game show.

Nadine Dorries MP

MP Nadine Dorries was suspended for leaving her constituency to take part in ITV’s ‘I’m A Celebrity, Get Me out of Here!’ in Australia this November. She was the first contestant to be voted out and remains on probation after returning to the UK.

Dorries claimed that she went into the jungle to raise public interest in politics, by giving the impression of a woman from the publics’ own background who was “interested in engaging with their world.”A University of Nottingham student explained his view that: “A politician’s job is to serve and represent the people that elected them, their constituents…whilst in the jungle she is unable to
do this.”

Jack Robertson, who studies Law, said: “When I vote or campaign for a politician I never consider how they would be on a Friday night with their friends, who their partners are, or what they do for hobbies. Considering whether or not they make good evening television is even further from my mind.”Dorries has insisted that she was successful by taking part in the show. She claimed: “I have achieved exactly what I set out to achieve by going into the jungle. I wanted to go in because I wanted to reach a wider audience.”Robertson’s response to this was that: “She brought a politician to a wider audience and not politics itself.”

He added: “It’s very hard to make any case for trusting politicians during an election campaign when they are watching one participate in a bush tucker in sunny Australia, a place most of us can only dream of visiting.”He proposed that Dorries does “the honourable thing” and resigns from her position: “In any line of work when you fundamentally fail to do your job, or in this case fail to turn up, you would face disciplinary charges, and it is only right that politicians are not exempt from this.”

Sinking her teeth into a Bush Tucker Trial

Dorries has insisted that she was granted permission to take a holiday, but due to the regulations of the show was not able to disclose the reason for her absence.

Kat Morgan, a Journalism student from the University of Hertfordshire, said Dorries “Didn’t really talk about the policies she wanted to address…the fact that she was the first to be voted out of the show highlights that she made an ineffective impact on the general public.”

Another Hertfordshire student said: “It was a good idea but I do feel she didn’t have to go to Australia. She could have taken part in a show in Britain. Getting a free holiday to Australia makes people angrier considering MPs are far wealthier than the average Brit who can’t afford a holiday.”

Terry Knight, who studies Music Composition and Technology, felt Dorries actions were more likely to alienate people than successfully appeal to the general public.

The decision on Dorries probation is expected later this month. She currently remains in the House of Commons as an independent politician.