The trips-off-your-tongue ThisIsHullandEastRiding.co.uk reports:
LIBERAL Democrat campaigner Jeremy Wilcock has been chosen to contest John Prescott’s seat at the next General Election. The former Deputy Prime Minister is retiring from the House of Commons at the next election after representing Hull East since 1970.
In the 2005 election vote Mr Prescott won with a reduced majority of 11,747 – down almost 3,600 on the previous General Election. Four years ago, the Lib Dems finished second with their candidate Andy Sloan increasing his party’s share of the vote. …
However, since 2005 the Lib Dems have established a comfortable overall majority on Hull City Council, winning several seats in east Hull along the way. Chris Gurevitch, chairman of the East Hull Liberal Democrats, said: “Jeremy is a well-known local figure and we think he will be an excellent candidate.” …
Mr Wilcock, who works at the University of Hull’s Business School, is no stranger to General Election campaigns. In 2001 he finished third for the Lib Dems in Selby and four years later he came third again, this time in York.
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7 Comments
Does this indicate that this is now a target, alongside Hull North? My father lives in Hull East and has argued with me for ages that we ought to target Prescott’s seat – that it is seen as a typical Labour fiefdom with resentment over nepotism and a certain hubris amongst its Labour councillors. Is David Prescott the Labour candidate or is it one of the selections that has been postponed?
There are about 160 seats where the LDs are a closer second than in Hull East, including a dozen or so in Yorks and Humber. These include Haltemprice/Howden, Hull West/Hessle and Hull North. Surely focusing on these seats would be a better use of resources?
That depends on the circumstances in each I would have thought. There are places where we could be forever second because the incumbent is staying on and is popular. Hul East does have some specific circumstances that I suggest mean it would be useful to review and see if it is worth it. Labour’s alleged nepotism in the area is, according to my old man, widely resented. They feel their councillors are aloof, arrogant and couldn’t really give a damn. My old man is not particularly a natural Lib Dem voter, but it would appear that there is a sector of the electorate in that constituency who are now “anything but Labour” and recognize us as a party in local government more than the Tories.
I was only asking is all, though. I’d be delighted if it were, if only because my old man might stop nagging me about it!
Hull North is the Lib Dem target seat for all and where the majority of effort is being placed in a bid to get Denis Healy elected.
The hope is if/when he is elected it will open the floodgates in Hull closing the gap to Labour in Hull West & Hessle and Hull East.
“These include Haltemprice/Howden…”
Not since the Great By-election, I suspect.
Tom, I think the point my odl man is trying to make is that there is a very specific one off effect in Hull East this time round that is worth taking a punt on – that of the retirement of John Prescott after however many centuries of representing that consitutency and alleged nepotism.
Mind you, I did notice quite a high BNP vote in Hull East didn’t I at the Euros?
Jock – your old man is no fool. No better time to beat Labour. Prescott’s personal vote will not transfer, and there are many people wanting to give them a bloody nose. We have outvoted them in the local elections here for the last 4-5 years, and now we have the real achievements of the City Council under LD control, as well as the respect shown to our very hard-working Councillors.