British police have arrested a man on suspicion of the murder of Ann Widdecombe, a high-profile former government minister whose death was announced on Friday.
Widdecombe, who died at the age of 78, was a Conservative member of parliament between 1987 and 2010, and held several junior ministerial positions in the government of Prime Minister John Major before joining Nigel Farage’s Brexit Party, which evolved into Reform UK.
A 26-year-old man was arrested on Friday afternoon on suspicion of murder the previous day, Devon and Cornwall police said in a televised announcement.
The suspected murder is not being treated as terrorism or as politically motivated, and police would not comment on the possible motive, saying the investigation is still in its early stages.
Devon and Cornwall Police Assistant Chief Constable Matt Longman described the suspect, who has not been charged, as a “white British man“ who lived within the force’s area. Investigating officers are keeping an ”open mind” as to whether the suspect was known to Widdecombe, he added.
Officers were called to her rural home in Haytor, on the edge of Dartmoor in Devon, by the ambulance service at around 11.40 a.m. on Thursday. Widdecombe, who lived alone, was found deceased, having sustained serious injuries. A heavy police presence remained there on Friday as the press descended on the rural area.
The announcement late on Friday afternoon that Widdecomb’s death was a suspected murder stunned the British media and political world. News of her death had been announced in the morning, before police revealed it was suspicious, with warm tributes paid to her from across the political spectrum.
Her former colleagues on the GB News channel noted their surprise as well as their sadness, saying she had appeared in good health recently.
A former prisons minister with outspoken Christian, conservative views, Widdecombe found fame after leaving Parliament as a contestant on the long-running TV series, “Strictly Come Dancing.”
‘A Distinguished Politician’
Prime Minister Keir Starmer told reporters it was important that the public “rise above any differences [and] the political divide.”He paid tribute to Widdecombe as a “distinguished politician” with “many achievements” and said his thoughts were with her family and friends.
Conservative Party leader Kemi Badenoch said she was “stunned.”
“I don’t understand how someone could do something so horrific to an elderly person,” she said, calling it a “nasty, horrific attack.”
Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood said on X that she was “deeply saddened” to hear of Widdecombe’s death, adding, “The circumstances of her death are extremely distressing and my thoughts are with Ann’s family and loved ones.”
2 MPs Murdered in Past Decade
Two serving British members of parliament have been murdered in the last decade.Widdecombe was known throughout her political career for her social conservatism, including opposition to abortion and to same-sex marriage. She supported bringing back the death penalty for murder, though more narrowly applied than previously, and was opposed to euthanasia.
A practicing Roman Catholic, Widdecombe was unmarried and emphasized the importance of family values. When The Telegraph revealed details of the MPs’ expenses scandal in 2009, it described her as one of Westminster’s “saints.”
After leaving parliament, it was her personality, rather than her dance style, that made her popular with viewers when she appeared on “Strictly Come Dancing” in 2010.
She later joined the Brexit Party and served as a member of the European Parliament between 2019 and 2020.
Her most recent post was as immigration spokesperson for Reform UK, the rebranded Brexit Party, which has led in most opinion polls for the past two years.
Following the announcement of her death, and before details of the murder inquiry were announced, former colleagues from both the Conservative and Reform UK parties paid tribute to her.
‘A Heroic Brexiteer’
Former Conservative prime minister Boris Johnson described her in a post on X as “a heroic Brexiteer and a great speaker who could move Tory audiences to such ecstasy that she was a very hard act to follow.”Reform leader Farage paid tribute to her in an X video, describing her as “without doubt, the best known female politician in Britain since Margaret Thatcher.”
He described her as a “remarkable, principled woman” who was “kind to everybody” and as someone who would “not herself have hurt a fly.”
Martin Daubney, a friend and colleague of Widdecombe’s at GB News and a fellow member of the Brexit Party, told the news channel he was struggling to comprehend what had happened and described her as “the kindest person you could ever meet.”
He said he understood she was in excellent health and working in the days before her death, appearing on a podcast and writing a column.
As well as the tributes, a number of posts about her death on social media took a celebratory tone before it was announced that a manhunt was under way for her suspected murder.
LGBT activist and director of “Stonewall” Peter Tatchell deleted a post in which he called her a “BIGOT” who had opposed gay law reforms for 40 years and supported legal discrimination against LGBT people.
“Contrary to the responses to my earlier post, I did NOT ‘celebrate’ Ann Widdecombe’s death,” he wrote on X after receiving backlash. “RIP I highlighted the harm & suffering she helped cause to LGBTs My post was scheduled long before reports that she was murdered were published. I only heard this 10 minutes ago No one deserves to die - let alone be murdered. RIP Ann.”
Conservative think tank the Bow Group, of which Widdecombe was senior patron, expressed deep sadness at her loss on X, writing, “Ann last addressed the Bow Group in 2022, speaking passionately in defence of free speech, an issue she saw as more important than any other.”
‘Strongest Voice for Free Speech’
The Bow Group’s chair, Ben Harris-Quinney, wrote on X, “Despite the very many tributes—the glee at her death evident on social media underlines the horror we are facing“Ann was perhaps the strongest voice for free speech in Britain, but freedom of speech goes in hand with freedom from harm.”
He added, “Britain has fallen to a place with neither.”
The management company that represented Widdecombe after she left politics said her life and career were driven by her strong Christian values and a deep commitment to public service.
“She loved the cut and thrust of political debate and, 16 years after leaving Parliament, was still actively campaigning for Reform UK and offering forthright views on the hot topics of the day,” Cloud9 Management said.
“As Ann once said...‘we get one go this side of eternity, one go. Life is not a dress rehearsal, you take opportunities that you like and you go for it, that’s my philosophy.’”
