Nadine Dorries Interview: There Is a Catholic Church Conspiracy against Me

Big Issue
April 24, 2014

http://www.bigissue.com/the-mix/news/3793/nadine-dorries-interview-there-is-a-catholic-church-conspiracy-against-me


Tory rebel Nadine Dorries on the Catholic Church's reaction to her book - and why she regrets supporting the bedroom tax

Tory outsider Nadine Dorries claims a Catholic conspiracy is targeting her for “attack” because of the contents of her debut novel.

The book, The Four Streets, includes a storyline of a Catholic priest abusing a young girl in 1950s Liverpool.

It was a particularly vitriolic review of The Four Streets in the Daily Telegraph that lead Dorries to her claim. Critic Christopher Howse – a former member of the hard-line Roman Catholic grouping Opus Dei – described it as “the worst novel I’ve read in 10 years”.

He was brought in, Dorries told The Big Issue, because the original review wasn’t tough enough on her.

“The Telegraph commissioned someone to review my book,” Dorries said. “It was a lovely review. They didn’t like it so they got someone from Opus Dei to review it.

“And one of the central characters in my book is a child-abusing priest. So you’re not going to get someone from Opus Dei to review a book about an abusive priest.

“If you go on to Conservative Home you can see a review Iain Dale has written of the Telegraph review.

“I was told the Catholic church will come out and attack me for the book and that seems to be what’s happening.”

In a wide-ranging interview published in full in this week’s Big Issue, former Tory whip and I’m A Celebrity Get Me Out contestant Dorries also slammed her government over the introduction of the ‘bedroom tax’.

“If I could go back I wouldn’t support what people call the ‘bedroom tax’,” she said. “I really regret that. That’s the one thing I find it hard to reconcile with my conscience, because of my background.

“I’d also tell myself to leave a note before I went into the jungle to do I’m A Celebrity. I could have pointed out that parliament is on recess and I wouldn’t be missing any government legislation.

“I’m glad I did it – I met Linda Robson and she’s become a very good friend. But the media was so vitriolic. I wasn’t expecting that. I thought they would be honest and report that parliament was on recess. But they didn’t. I was shocked at how they twisted it.”

Dorries has long been a thorn in the side of her Tory bosses. She called David Cameron and George Osborne “two arrogant posh boys” in 2012 and insists she thrives on her no-nonsense approach.

“I enjoy being a rebel,” Dorries expained. “In the Labour party that’s just not tolerated. I appreciate that in the Conservative party – being a rebel is not a crime. For a Labour MP it is a crime. You find yourself ousted from your seat pretty quickly.”

You can read Jane Graham’s (@janeannie) full Letter To My Younger Self interview with Nadine Dorries in this week’s Big Issue, on sale now