Hartlepool by-election

That's horrific though isn't it? If people will STILL vote someone in based soley on brexit? Given how bad it is?

It's honestly depressing that there are still brexiteers in this coutnry. Let alone enough of them to ignore all forms of corruption and incompetence to vote for a political candidate. I honestly think there's something not right with the majority of Brexiteers. I don't know what it is but it seems ludicrous to belive in this ridiculous cult. Now, when it's destroying the country. I don't get it
It's a cult, no other explanation, you only have to look at the comments Williams is getting.
Working blass folk would rather have a yorkshire farmer who's never been to hartlepool over a person working on the front line for the NHS in the town.
 
It is difficult to talk about sleaze when you are walking around with Peter Mandelson though.

I don't think she was saying she gets asked about policy all the time. Lets say for argument sake one in four doors you know on ask "what policies do you have, how will you make things better for us in Hartlepool 76 years of voting Labour" how do you go about answering that?

NHS - they have not come out with a policy to roll back privatisation. Their only commitment so far is to give NHS workers 1% more pay than the 1% the Tories have offered.

Fair distribution of wealth - Starmer was against rising corporation tax

Fair wages - They refused to back NHS worker's demands for a pay rise

Youth opportunities - Labour previously supported austerity which slashed youth services

Good state education - Starmer refused to back teachers on COVID

Having empty words or just saying "fair distribution of wages" is not enough, you need to be able to tell people how you are going to do it.

Labour at the moment simply cannot. Starmer might be the sensible choice but that does not make people want to go out and vote for him. He needs to give them more reasons.
Thanks for replying, I had a bit of a rant when I saw your post.

I think Labour get tied up too much in making sure everything stacks up, the past is the past, what was said and done then does not matter, you have to fight for the future in my view. Johnson turned Tory policy on its head in 6 months and won the last election, nobody worried about this and that on the Tory side.

Fair play to those campaigning though but I think they need to get their heads up, be proud of being Labour and get stuck in on the Tories abysmal record.
 
It's a cult, no other explanation, you only have to look at the comments Williams is getting.
Working blass folk would rather have a yorkshire farmer who's never been to hartlepool over a person working on the front line for the NHS in the town.
I think cult is the correct word. Blind faith in something no matter what negative evidence about it exists.

It's only depressing seeing people defend. I genuinely think there is something wrong with people who still defend brexit. Something hasn't quite clicked in their brains, or they are sociapths or what I don't know but there's something not right about wanting to defend such a disaster right now
 
It's a town full of skin deep xenophobes though....
No reasoning with them on this, they don't even realise....
Mad thing is, we probably have less immigrants in Hartlepool than anywhere in teesside!
 
BBC News channel with Victoria Derbyshire is focusing on Hartlepool today. They have spoke with the Labour candidate, local news paper editor, local vicar, and two local marginal voters. The Conservative candidate did not want to appear on BBC.

33% of Hartlepool children get free school meals compared with national average of 19% - if it goes Conservative it must be poorest Tory seat in the country.
 
BBC News channel with Victoria Derbyshire is focusing on Hartlepool today. They have spoke with the Labour candidate, local news paper editor, local vicar, and two local marginal voters. The Conservative candidate did not want to appear on BBC.

33% of Hartlepool children get free school meals compared with national average of 19% - if it goes Conservative it must be poorest Tory seat in the country.
I imagine the Tory candidate will also duck any form of hustings/debate with the other candidates. In fact, she'll run a mile.
 
If Labour want to make progress they need to scrap policies altogether and focus on three word catchphrases. That's about as much as your average voter can take in before their attention drifts to the latest episode of 'Britain's Got Talent' or 'I'm a Celebrity'
 
Tories are now 1.40 to win Hartlepool on Betfair (about 70% chance of winning) - if this is a true reflection all voters who voted UKIP have gone over to them or are not voting. It implies Labour have not managed to pick up any ex UKIP voters. To me its a bigger turnaround than even Redcar in 2019. To ever gain power the Labour Party has to win back left behind areas of England - are they willing? and do they know how to?
 
I assume she means Hartlepool.

With a population of 90k.

Two jobs each. I know who I'd be voting for.

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To ever gain power the Labour Party has to win back left behind areas of England - are they willing? and do they know how to?

Certainly they know how to. Labour have only gained seats at one UK Parliamentaty General Election in 20+ years. Anybody who genuinely wanted to win and was willing to be pragmatic about it would base themselves on the 2017 election. Sadly Labour's centrists put their ideology above everything else - ironically something they spent years accusing everyone else of doing.
 
The statistics show that Hartlepool’s poverty gap has got wider against National trends since Johnson got into power, somehow this is being blamed on previous Labour neglect rather than 11 years of Conservative central administration, there has been no redress or levelling up in the area, Left Behind By Labour, has replaced Get Brexit Done as the punchy mantra, the hijacking, at local level, of the Conservative party by ex-UKIP members seems to have gone under the radar and attracted little or no comment, but it does show the direction the Conservative’s are taking towards the xenophobic right.
 
If Labour want to make progress they need to scrap policies altogether and focus on three word catchphrases. That's about as much as your average voter can take in before their attention drifts to the latest episode of 'Britain's Got Talent' or 'I'm a Celebrity'
So why don't they then, if that is the publics mentality then accept it and use it to their advantage.

The tories get slated for their soundbites and slogans but it's working, so surely its time for 'if you can't beat them, join them'

Its fine being idealistic and sticking to your principles but that won't get you elected anymore. It's a sad reflection on our society, but it's true and the only way Labour can change it is to get in to power and if that means they have sink lower than a snakes belly to achieve it then I'm sorry but that what they need to do.
 
Does Hartlepool mean anything just now?

It’s money for votes isn’t it?

Johnson is offering investment in the town via Ben Houchen and he is in a position to do that because he is in power.
 
It's a town full of skin deep xenophobes though....
No reasoning with them on this, they don't even realise....
Mad thing is, we probably have less immigrants in Hartlepool than anywhere in teesside!
Less than anywhere in England I would say
 
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