As has been the case across the city and country, UKIP was the beneficiary of a big protest vote here yesterday. The split in the vote for the mainstream parties resulting from that worked more to Labour’s advantage in Longbridge, and it worked more to the Tories advantage in Kings Norton.
Everything I picked up on the doorstep suggests to me that only a fraction of the people who voted UKIP around here did so because they actually support their policies. A bigger number did so either to register anger about specific issues – such the way the green waste issue has been handled – or more generally to say that too much of what goes on in the world of politics seems out of touch.
If the Tories think that adds up to some kind of endorsement of what David Cameron and George Osborne are doing, they need to take a hard look at themselves. The term “out of touch” could have been made for them. Nationally, the Tories have lost 230 Council seats while Labour have gained 338 – taking control of six councils.
Neither I nor the local Labour team will show any complacency. You can’t tackle anti-politics sentiment by ignoring local people’s concerns. We’ll redouble our efforts in the local community to represent local people effectively and restore trust that political action can bring change for the better. That’s at the core of what Labour is about and is the spirit in which we will approach next year’s general election.
