Next to Paine’s statue in the market town of Norfolk, some of Truss’ voters are equally disparaging. “I think we just need a massive change, so bring back Thomas Paine’s philosophy,” says retired legal administrator Karen Porter. Truss has been MP for Norfolk South West since 2010 and Porter has been scathing about her record. On the penultimate leadership day, 30 miles up the A11 in Norwich, Porter says: “Liz Truss doesn’t care about voters. Whenever you write to her, you just don’t get the right answer. She’s only interested in her own career.” In the last elections Tras won 69% of the votes with a majority of 26,195. But in Thetford, the constituency’s largest town, Truss supporters are hard to find. Even lifelong Tories like butcher Ian Hilton would prefer Boris Johnson to either Truss or Rishi Sunak. “They shouldn’t have thrown Boris out. He might have said some pork but not all,” he says. Anglian Water worker Michael Carriage: “I think Boris will be back. He will be like Trump in America.’ Photo: Martin Godwin/The Guardian And Anglian Water network worker Michael Carriage says: “I think Boris will be back. He will be like Trump in America. Boris defended Britain. Look how much money he paid for the pandemic.” He added: “I don’t think Liz Truss should cut taxes – we need as much money as possible for Britain.” As a debt manager at Citizens Advice in Thetford, Michelle Marchesi is not allowed to discuss political parties. But she says the tax cuts won’t help her growing client list. He says: “People here are panicking and not being given answers, which doesn’t help people’s mental health. There has to be more for people because tax cuts are just not going to support the most vulnerable people in our society.” Ben Dimmock, who is unemployed, says his family of four will not be able to afford to heat their home this winter. “There will be extra layers so we can eat. The £400 they gave us won’t even make a dent in my account.’ The £400 energy rebate “isn’t even going to put a dent in my bill,” says Ben Dimmock, pictured with daughter Rebecca. Photo: Martin Godwin/The Guardian He added: “I don’t think much of Liz Truss. There is nothing here apart from charity shops and the only jobs are factory shifts at £10 an hour. This is her turf and she can’t see all the problems?’ Robert Davies, who works at the mental health charity Mind, agrees: ‘He should just walk around town all day and see what people think. “I only had a 3% pay rise and everything has gone up by 10%. I can only pay what I can afford and I won’t be able to pay my energy bill. I can’t see myself voting for Liz Truss.” Truss’ likely opponent in the constituency at the next election is Terry Jeremy, a 37-year-old Labor county, district and town councillor, who has lived in Thetford all his life. Lucy and Robert Davies. Mental health charity worker Robert encourages Truss to walk around Thetford for a day to see what people think. Photo: Martin Godwin/The Guardian Jeremy admits standing up to Truss would be a “cheap” task in such a rural Tory stronghold. But he believes the size of Truss’s majority last time was flattered by Brexit. Jeremy said: “People think of south west Norfolk as a picture postcard, and it really isn’t. We have many deprivations. My caseload has to do with the cost of living crisis, food bank referrals and the housing situation.’ He mentions the growing problems in the constituency: “We have the worst adult social care in the UK. We have the only mental health trust in special measures. We have a hospital in King’s Lynn that is falling apart and we are the fifth worst for access to dentistry in the UK. In a place that reliably votes Conservative, people here are constantly disappointed by them.” On Thursday, Mr Truss promised to “swirl” the East of England’s economy with tax cuts, a crackdown on strikes and regulations. She may impress members of the Tory party, but her voters seem unconvinced. ‘Her policies are appalling’: retired historic buildings consultant Frank Dowling in front of a statue of Captain Mainwaring, from Dad’s Army, which was filmed in the city. Photo: Martin Godwin/The Guardian Frank Dowling, a retired historic building consultant, said: “Most economists think that cutting taxes and having a smaller government will make things much worse.” He added: “Liz Truss came to our garden once as part of an open garden, she was very pleasant but her policies are appalling. She doesn’t seem ready to deal with the emerging crisis over utilities. There has been a 5,000% increase in sewage disposal over the last five years.” Dowling added: “Tom Paine certainly wouldn’t vote Conservative and I never would.”
