Alex Cunningham the 2023 winner stepped down as an MP in July
Beard Liberation Front
21st November
contact BLF Organiser Keith Flett: @keithbeard.bsky.social
The Beard Liberation Front, the informal network of beard wearers, has said that it is facing an unprecedented challenge in drawing up its annual shortlist for the Parliamentary Beard of the Year.
The General Election on July 4th 2024 saw the departure of a large number of existing MPs- mostly clean shaven Tories- and the arrival of an equally large number of Labour and LibDem MPs.
While the existing Parliamentary Beard of the Year holder Alex Cunningham has stepped down as an MP the campaigners say they are open to nominations for the 2024 shortlist.
Politics is a disputatious activity and the shortlist invariably draws comment from partisans. However a nomination should provide a brief reason why the MP nominated should appear on the shortlist
The shortlist is NOT about the politics of the MPs on the list. It’s about whether their activities during the year have provided a positive image of the hirsute during the year. Obviously this can be disputed- how positive or otherwise- so the shortlist will go to a vote with the winner announced in mid-December.
BLF Organiser Keith Flett said, there is no question that the Parliamentary Beard of the Year shortlist is a challenge with so many new MPs. We will review nominations and aim to publish a finalised list in the near future.
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