North Shropshire by-election 2021: The candidates standing

People in the constituency of North Shropshire will head to the polls on 16 December to elect an MP.

The vote follows the resignation of Conservative MP Owen Paterson, who was found to have breached parliamentary rules on lobbying.

Former cabinet minister Mr Paterson had held the constituency, a Tory stronghold, since 1997.

These are the candidates who have said they intend to stand for election (listed alphabetically):

Dr Neil Shastri-Hurst, a former British Army Medical Officer and honorary NHS consultant who now works as a barrister.

Kirsty Walmsley is a former Oswestry councillor and grew up just outside the town.

Ben Wood, from Oswestry, started his working life in a local hardware shop.

All candidates must submit their completed nomination papers by 16:00 GMT on 19 November.

A deposit of £500 is also required which is returned if the candidate gets more than 5% of first choice votes in the election.

Applications to register to vote must be submitted by 00:00 on 30 November and new applications to vote by post must reach the council by 17:00 on 1 December.