Mid Beds by-election: Meet the voters backing Labour, the Lib Dems or no-one

Polls are open today in the Mid Beds and Tamworth by-elections, offering Labour another chance to prove its progress towards getting back into government.

But the party faces a significant uphill struggle given the five-digit Tory majorities in both seats. In Mid Beds, a September poll by Survation showed Labour and the Tories neck and neck on 29% with the Lib Dems on 22%, and candidate Alistair Strathern told LabourList yesterday it would go “down to the wire” as he urged members to join a polling day ring-a-thon.

LabourList spoke to voters this week in the small town of Flitwick in the Mid Bedfordshire constituency, to get their take on the state of Britain’s main parties and what’s shaping how they plan to vote. Flitwick currently has one Conservative and two independent councillors.

David Newman: ‘Labour has a policy for growth’

“On Thursday I’m planning to vote for Labour. I’ve always voted Labour, and I believe they have the best policies for the coming crisis the country faces.”

Asked why, he added: “The policies I think Labour has. The ability to think about growth in the economy, because at the moment the Conservatives think mainly about short-term policies.

“Labour I think have a policy for growth, which will grow the economy so everybody will benefit.”

Claire Keech: ‘I hate Rishi…but I’m not going to vote’

“I’m not actually going to vote. I’ve voted for different parties before in the past, and in my world they don’t actually listen. They say all these promises and then nothing happens.

“I definitely won’t be voting for the Conservatives after what they’ve just done to the [XL] bully dogs, not in a million years… I think it’s disgusting. It’s not the dogs’ fault, it’s the owners’ fault.”

She added: “I just don’t like the Tories. I hate Rishi; I think he’s horrible. He’s just here for money and to try and get what he wants.”

Asked what she made of Labour and the Lib Dems, she said: “There’s been a few down my road and they’ve come and knocked on my door. I have read the leaflets and that, but I just feel like they don’t fulfil what they’re promising when they’re campaigning. I feel like there’s no point in voting, to be honest.

If politicians fulfilled their promises, “we could have some faith in them but as it is I don’t really have much faith in any of the parties”.

But she said that some of Labour’s leaflet pledges “sound good”, and she may still change her mind and head to the polling station once she has read all of the leaflets. If she does vote, it will “probably” be Labour.

Abigail Bralee: ‘I’ll be voting Lib Dem – how are Labour’s ideas going to be paid for?’

“I know how I’m going to vote. I will be voting for the Liberal Democrats. Generally my principles tend to be a bit more middle of the road, with the Lib Dems. That’s where I’ve been in the past. I have voted Conservative in the past.”

Asked why not Labour, she said: “Lots of great ideas, social ideas – how are they going to be paid for and funded? Taxes obviously is a way to do that, and right now it’s going to be quite a struggle for a lot of people just to stomach how they’re going to pay more taxes.”

You “just don’t know” if Labour will raise taxes, as it is “generally what we expect” from Labour governments.

She said she was not planning to vote tactically between Labour and the Lib Dems, but “might do come the general election”.

“Because there’s a general election next year, it’s a bit of test vote. So whoever comes in at the minute, they’re not necessarily going to be in for very long – and it’s a bit of a ‘we’ll see what happens’ and then we’ll get another chance next year.”

She expects the race to be “close”, and says the amount of materials she’s received in the post, including from independent candidates “last minute”, is “absolutely incredible”.