Political career
Thomas was one of fourteen former services personnel standing as Labour candidates in the 2024 general election with him stating on his website that he was seeking to "neutralise Johnny Mercer's electoral 'trump card' of having a military service record" by running in his constituency of Plymouth Moor View. [9] [10] Mercer accused Thomas of attempting to "bloat" his military record, referring to a 2023 article in "The Guardian" newspaper where the journalist wrote Thomas "also served in combat missions before leaving the corps in February, he said, but remains tightlipped about the details" [11] . Mercer called Thomas a "real life Walter Mitty in Plymouth". [5] [12] Veterans Minister Alistair Carns, a decorated Colonel who had been in line for a senior 1-star role in Special Forces, [13] said “Fred Thomas has served in high-threat war zones where the risk to life was a daily occurrence. As a former colonel, I believe service should be above politics.” [14] Former Conservative defence secretary Ben Wallace stated that serving "on operations or an operational tour is not necessarily the same as being in combat", and that he "[knew] exactly what the Labour candidate did in uniform and while he was on operations he was not himself in combat." [15]
Thomas said that, having recently served on sensitive operations, he was unable to discuss aspects of his military service and instead cited his certificate of valediction, signed by an unnamed Special Forces Support Group lieutenant colonel, which stated that he obtained "considerable operational experience" relative to how long he served and "lead personnel...in a range of hostile and challenging environments". [16] [12]
On 4 July 2024, Thomas was elected as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Plymouth Moor View with 17,665 votes (41.2%), a majority of 5,604 over Mercer. [17] [1] On 4 September 2024, he made his maiden speech in the House of Commons during a debate on the Budget Responsibility Bill. [18] In his speech, Thomas stated: "I want to use my position in this House to empower our community to effect change and generate hope that life will get better and that families can be lifted out of poverty." [19]
In October 2024, Thomas was elected to the Defence Select Committee. Following his appointment, he said: "I hope to use my position on the Defence Committee to ensure we have high level scrutiny on the procurement practices that have squandered billions of pounds and to look closely at how we look after our personnel." [20]
Thomas has spoken about modernising the UK’s defence industry, increasing the pace of innovation, and supporting small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in contributing to UK defence. He is the co-chair of the All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on Defence Technology, which aims to improve understanding of the UK’s defence technology sector. [21] [22]
Thomas has been a strong advocate of support for Ukraine. In September 2024, he visited Kyiv with UK Friends of Ukraine to participate in the Yalta European Strategy Conference. [23] He has regularly raised Ukraine in the House of Commons. [24] [25] [26]
Thomas has campaigned for a new A&E department at Derriford Hospital in his constituency of Plymouth Moor View. He wrote to Boris Johnson, asking for an apology for his Government’s "broken promises" and has asked the Deputy Prime Minister about Derriford in PMQs, held meetings with Health Ministers, and joined staff on an A&E shift. [27] [28] [29]
Thomas has been running a "Football For All" campaign to improve access to sport. Thomas started the campaign in summer 2024 in collaboration with Argyle Community Trust, to offer free football sessions to young boys and girls. [30] Thomas has since met with the Sports Minister, Stephanie Peacock MP, and Sport England, to lobby for better funding. In December 2024, he held a roundtable discussion at Plymouth Argyle, bringing together regional stakeholders to discuss how to improve access to sport. [31] [32]
Thomas has taken a keen interest in SEND provision, due to the need for improvements in Plymouth Moor View. Thomas’ first visit as an MP was to Mill Ford special needs school in Plymouth. [33] He spoke in a Westminster Hall debate on SEND provision, asking the Minister to “help expand capacity at Plymouth Moor View’s special schools”. [34]
United Kingdom 
