Labour needs strong leadership and a plan to tackle UKIP, a former PPC writes

It’s No Game (Part 1)

So Boris is out and Gove is in. Great news for the commentariat and the chattering classes but no good whatsoever for the people who continue to suffer under a Conservative government. Elections make great press. Heroes and villains. Winners and losers. But it’s no game for the many vulnerable people across the UK who still need a strong and unified Labour government.

The issues on which we fought the last general election are still stark realities. The Tory bedroom tax, cuts to disability benefits, increase in foodbanks and zero-hours contracts.  Alongside the increase in hate crime since the saddening EU election result, these are issues that are affecting our communities up and down the country. They will not be resolved while the Conservatives remain in power.

In government, the Tories have been a disgrace. The manifesto pledge by Cameron to call an EU referendum has emboldened the right-wing of his party and will become part of his dismal legacy as he disappears into the sunset.

So where is the opposition to all of this?

There will, no doubt, soon be a Labour leadership election that we all hope will bring the party back together. And this is what we need. As a born and bred South Essex resident, and a former Labour councillor and PPC, I know the region well. Currently there is real soul-searching going on for many members regarding the best way forward for our party. The past few years have been very tough politically. Losing control of Thurrock council. Losing councillors in many areas to UKIP. Voting to leave the EU across the county. This is Labour’s current reality in South Essex.

Nigel Farage stepped down today but many members still want the Labour leadership to act swiftly to tackle the rise of UKIP across Essex. The temperature is rising across the county as the effects of acute housing and employment pressures are felt, along with UKIP and the Tories’ prompting of people to lay the blame at the doors of immigrants, rather than at policy failures. Last week I heard reports of racist abuse being aimed at French and Polish residents of the Brentwood and Ongar constituency. Our members are crying out for leadership on this issue.

Over the last year our constituency has seen a threefold increase to 600 members and registered supporters today. And the membership is diverse. New and returning members have been emboldened, after years of inactivity, by the rise of Jeremy Corbyn. Members who were equally as supportive of Liz Kendall during the elections have become increasingly vocal in their calls for change at the top. The Brentwood and Ongar CLP eventually voted for Andy Burnham who I supported strongly as the candidate in the best position and with the skills and gravitas necessary to bring the party together.

It is no secret that many members feel extremely passionate about who is in charge of their party. The membership has elected Corbyn on a huge mandate. The membership has also selected their MPs to represent them in parliament.

The positive outcome from the forthcoming Labour leadership election will be the choice of a leader who unifies the majority of our party and who can gain the support of the wider public in the next general election – whenever it is called.

Leadership is about strength and a vision for a better future. It is also sometimes about compromise and an understanding that not all views will be shared by everyone. The leader of the Labour Party must, above all, be a unifier and a leader for the whole of the UK. If not, we will fail and remain in opposition while the people who rely on us the most will have been let down again. It’s no game.

Mike Le-Surf was PPC for South Basildon and East Thurrock at the general election in 2015.