Sarah Wollaston: from GP to MP

“I’m the same person, but when you change your initials from GP to MP, just that one letter, the biggest shock is the change in how people feel about you,” says Sarah Wollaston, the Conservative MP for Totnes, in Devon. “The difference is that as a GP people are inclined to trust you and like you until proven otherwise, whereas as an MP people are inclined to mistrust you until proven otherwise.”

Four years ago, Wollaston, a mother of three, was working as a GP in Devon and had attended no political party events. Despite this, she stood as a parliamentary candidate for the 2010 elections. She knew then that trust would be a key asset and during the campaign wrote “In the current atmosphere of cynicism and mistrust of politicians, I hope the electorate of Totnes will vote for someone they feel has real life experience, can appreciate their needs and whom they …