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“This will be a tough election for Labour”, says Corby PPC

August 6, 2012 11:52 am

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Labour’s candidate for the Corby by-election Andy Sawford has just released the following statement:

“Louise Mensch was obviously struggling to balance being MP for Corby and East Northamptonshire with her family and business commitments. I respect her for the honest way she talked about this and her decision to step down.

“Labour is now looking forward to the campaign ahead, fighting for action on jobs and the economy, supporting our local services which are facing massive cuts and working with local community organisations.

“During the by-election we will focus on the two wasted years of Tory policies that have taken the country back into recession and left Corby suffering job losses in both the public and private sector.

“This will be a tough election for Labour but we are determined to hold this Tory-led Government to account by showing the disastrous impact of their polices on the people of Corby.”

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  • http://twitter.com/KulganofCrydee Kulgan of Crydee

    If this is going to be a Tough election for Labour I can only imagine that an easy one would be a By Election with only 1 Labour candidate & no candidates from any other party.

    Tories only have 3.6% majority over Labour and the PPC is son of the previous incumbent who held the seat for 13 yrs.  #DoneDeal

    • John Ruddy

      Andy’s dad held the seat of Kettering, currently held by Philip Hollobone. 

    • Redshift

      You’d be correct if swing was the only factor and I think this is going to be a Labour seat come the next general election. The only difficulty is you get lower turnout in by-elections. This is always a difficult factor for the Labour party since this negatively affects our vote more than the Tories. I think we have an advantage but it’s not as large as you’re making out.

    • geedee

       Not much point in having the trouble of asking people to vote really. You’ve decided the result and that’s how it will be – don’t want to give these pesky voters a chance of ruining your plan.

      Classic!

  • 000a000

    I struggle to think of how this could be any less tough for Labour. However they don’t exactly help themselves with this sort of moronic statement.

    • aracataca

      That’s a sort of moronic post.  See what EB says, also note the middle class Tory voting idyll that is East Northants.

  • EB

    Two reasons why he’s said this: expectations setting and to avoid complacency. This is the first marginal byelection this parliament, its big, and if it looks as good for Lab as claimed, Tories will want to play down expectations nearer the election. Sawford has played this well

  • http://www.facebook.com/people/Mike-Homfray/510980099 Mike Homfray

    Glad that we have a good candidate who is the son of a popular local MP, keeping the swing down to a reasonable level in 2010

    • Just_Another_Voter

      What is it about Labour and family dynasties? It’s almost as if they want to keep the little people out of politics.

      • aracataca

        Bit of a sweeping statement that.  And what about father and son MPs Angus and Francis Maude (Tories)?   

        I suppose if you grow up in a family that’s politically orientated some of that’s going to rub off.  

        • aracataca

          And Boris Johnson’s brother, Joseph, is an MP.  Neville Chamberlain was the son of Joseph Chamberlain, also a politician.  

          By way of contrast, I remember Nigella Lawson saying she wasn’t political at all.  Must have been a bit tough for her growing up and instantly being identified as daughter of Nigel.

  • CW

    Erm isn’t the seat just Corby, and not Corby and East Northamptonshire? 

    • aracataca

      No.  It is Corby and East Northants.  

      East Northants contains lots of middle class villages that wouldn’t look out of place in the Cotswolds – and this has tended to boost the Tory vote in the constituency.

      Mensch herself lives in one such village.  Presumably it got a bit boring for her.

  • John Dore

    Should smash the Tories, at least a 4k majority.

  • aracataca

    There’s a good article about this by-election in the HuffPost:

    ‘For the connoisseur of by-elections, Corby is a good one – a marginal seat that has so far reflected the national winner (Conservative 1983-97, Labour 1997-2010, Conservative since 2010), and a constituency of two bizarrely juxtaposed political and social environments 
    ‘…. The proportion of the seat’s electorate that is in Corby itself is just over half – around 40,000 electors are from Corby and 35,000 from East Northamptonshire. Politics in Corby/EN  is polarised between some very Labour and very Tory areas.

    ‘http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/lewis-baston/louise-mensch-corby-_b_1746366.html?utm_hp_ref=uk-politics 

    Cameron must be fuming that Mensch has created the opportunity for another humiliation for his beleaguered government.

  • Brumanuensis

    As aracataca points out, Corby is the quintessential marginal. Even in 1983, the Conservative majority was under 4000 and Louise Mensch barely won it in 2010.

    So frankly this is sudden death for Ed Miliband. If Labour don’t win Corby, he’s sunk. He’ll have to resign, because there is no way he can fail to win a by-election of this importance and remain leader. On the other hand, the payoff for gaining a Conservative-held seat in a key battleground, will give him enormous political kudos.

    High stakes all round.

  • http://www.facebook.com/andrew.m.peacock Andrew Mark Peacock

    People in Corby be so fedup with the Conservative distroying the NHS, giving millionaires tax cuts and with high unempolyment in there area they wont vote Conservative or Liberal Democrats.

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