Tramping the streets of Richmond and North Kingston during a chilly November has been a far more heart-warming experience than I expected when I was selected as Labour’s parliamentary byelection candidate a couple of weeks ago. Up and down the constituency, there is a strong bedrock of Labour supporters, greatly outnumbering the numbers who previously actually voted for the party. Evidence on the doorstep is that the Liberal Democrat vote is very soft. There is no great loyalty towards them as most of their support comes from people who are simply anti-Tory. There was, in fact, a big swing in 2015 to Labour from the Lib Dems who lost a 24 per cent of the share of the vote, leaving them with only 19 per cent – just 7 per cent ahead of us.
Richmond is the sort of area that, as a result of years of neglect and lack of campaigning, is conventionally seen as impossible territory for Labour. Actually, it is not. There is a substantial portion of people who are solid Labour and they could be the bedrock upon which could be the basis for building further support. It is a self-fulfilling prophecy that these are no-go areas for Labour.
Of course, every political party has limited resources and some may ask ‘what is the point on wasting effort where there is no hope of ever winning an election?’ I feel this is mistaken. There is a non-Tory majority here that means that with hard work, of the sort that used to be the hallmark of the Lib Dems, anything could happen. There is an opportunity for Labour.
Seizing this opportunity needs boots on the ground. While there is a hard core of real stalwarts helping me on this campaign, there are not enough of them to do this job alone. We ought to organise in ways that would attract more really committed people who, in turn, would be able to bring in other people less able to offer so much time.
The key point is that nowhere should be abandoned. There are lots of Richmonds across the country where our presence can make a difference, even if it just a matter of getting a few councillors elected. Standing up for local people and effective scrutiny of Tory policies which are harming communities requires effective Labour representatives. We need to all chip in to make that happen.
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Christian Wolmar is Labour’s parliamentary candidate in the upcoming Richmond Park and North Kingston byelection. He tweets at @christianwolmar
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I’m optimistic about Richmond now that we’re a socialist Labour party once again. Memories of our Tory-lite years in office may hold us back somewhat but now we’re offering a REAL alternative!
Alf, you are becoming quite boring !
Thanks Christian. Most of that applies in Sleaford & North Hykeham too, we just need the boots on the ground. So if you can’t get to Richmond Park to help out, come and help us!