James Wild - a former special advisor to the defence secretary - chosen as Tory candidate for North Norfolk
North Norfolk Conservatives have selected James Wild as the Prospective Parliamentary Candidate for the General Election. Picture: Owen Cooban - Credit: POA(Phot) Owen Cooban - Royal Na
A former special advisor to the defence secretary is to stand against North Norfolk MP Norman Lamb in the upcoming general election.
James Wild has been chosen as the Conservative Party candidate ahead of the poll on June 8.
He is married to the leader of the House of Lords, Baroness Natalie Evans, and has held several advisory roles.
The 40-year-old former lobbyist was born in Norwich and grew up in North Walsham in the constituency. He attended Manor Road Primary School before winning an assisted place at Norwich School. He then studied at Queen Mary College, University of London.
Mr Wild, a Norwich City season ticket holder, said: 'I'm delighted to be selected for the area where I grew up and that shaped my character and values.
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'There are 37 days to win this seat and deliver a strong Conservative government to ensure that North Norfolk benefits from a successful Brexit and beyond.'
Over the last four years Mr Wild has been Special Adviser to Sir Michael Fallon in three government departments – in the Business Department helping to make it easier to start and grow a business; in the Department of Energy increasing investment in generation including offshore wind; and since July 2014 in the Ministry of Defence dealing with national security threats to the UK.
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Mr Wild will be standing against Mr Lamb, a Liberal Democrat MP, during the election on June 8.
The pro-EU pressure group Open Britain has said it is planning to provide activists to help Mr Lamb defend his seat.
Welcoming his appointment, Tom FitzPatrick, chairman of Norfolk Conservative Association, said: 'We've chosen a strong local candidate who has worked at the heart of government and understands just how to deliver on the priorities of North Norfolk in Westminster.
'We have a highly motivated team ready to pull out all the stops to win this seat so that we have strong and stable leadership under Theresa May, rather than end up with a coalition of chaos.'
