“Our state ceremonies have a religious foundation. We have compulsory religious education. And the Church should be a moral guardian. We have in this country a long Christian heritage and Christian culture and we shouldn't be in too much of a hurry to give that up.”

British politician and media personality

Ann Widdecombe is a British politician and media personality. A Conservative MP from 1987 to 2010, she represented Maidstone and The Weald, and earlier Maidstone, in the House of Commons. She later joined the Brexit Party, later Reform UK, in 2019. She served as a Member of the European Parliament for South West England from 2019 to 2020, and as the party’s immigration and justice spokesperson from 2023 until 2026.