Well, well, well, what is happening to the Tories in North Shropshire? It is reported this morning that Anthony Allen, a Town Councillor in Market Drayton, has defected to Reclaim, who have claimed him as their first elected councillor.
Exc: 10 days before polling, one of North Shropshire's Tory cllrs has defected, becoming Reclaim's 1st elected official.
Anthony Allen warns: 'the Conservatives simply aren't conservative any more,' citing concerns on migration, high taxes & green issues.https://t.co/FKJXSYgwYT
— James Heale (@JAHeale) December 6, 2021
Now, as a parish councillor myself, describing Mr Allen as a top Tory councillor, as Reclaim have done, is a bit like describing me as a senior figure in Suffolk local government, but it does give the impression of a Conservative campaign in disarray.
As reported by the Independent;
The 54-year-old cab company owner said his former party had “gone soft on illegal immigration, they’ve lost control of taxation and are obsessed with crippling green taxes nobody wants”.
18:00 And now the Deputy Mayor of Market Drayton Town Council has defected, this time to Reform UK. Mark Whittle is reported to have said;
I’m faced with no choice… how can I possibly back a candidate from Birmingham who has zero knowledge of North Shropshire and the challenges our community faces?
Don’t forget, you can donate to Helen Morgan’s campaign here or, if you can get to North Shropshire in person, or help in any other way, here’s the link.
* Mark Valladares is the Monday Editor of Liberal Democrat Voice.
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6 Comments
This is no surprise. The Conservatives have been falling apart in Shropshire for a while. We had unitary elections in May 2021. The Conservatives went into it an unhappy party. One of the more moderate Tories was deselected and told the world what she thought.
https://andybodders.co.uk/2021/04/20/astonishing-blue-on-blue-attack-as-deselected-tory-lashes-out-at-council-leadership/
A unitary councillor in Market Drayton was deselected due to a perceived lack of loyalty, probably one of the few times a political party has deselected a cabinet portfolio holder. He won his seat back as an independent. Other key and experienced councillors were shown the door. The previous vice-chair of southern planning had been deselected despite being true blue and good at his job.
This was to shore up the struggling leader of Shropshire Council. He represented a ward in Shrewsbury and lost both his unitary and town council seats. Dismissed by the Lib Dems.
https://andybodders.co.uk/2021/05/10/local-elections-2021-the-county-results-nutting-dismissed-opposition-parties-gain-but-fail-to-win-control/
The new vice-chair of the south planning committee was subsequently sacked (unconstitutionally) for voting against the local plan, only to continue as an independent and as vice-chair as the post is in the gift of the committee not the council leader.
The Lib Dems gained seats in May 2021 and built up strength. We are now seeing that strength on the streets and in the hamlets of North Shropshire supported by MPs and hundreds of volunteers from across the country.
The Tories have weakened themselves through complacency and taking their constituents for granted. In 2021, the Conservatives gained 11% more seats across England with the Boris Bounce but in Shropshire they lost 12% of their seats.
These days, there is no Boris Bounce. That’s why we can win North Shropshire.
Now there are two, another defected to Reform a couple of hours ago.
Oddsbodkins
If the party of Priti Patel is “soft” on immigration the defector has extraordinary standards.
I am quite sure the loss of life as people try to cross the channel is another consequence of Brexit.
Tristan Ward 6th Dec ’21 – 7:28pm:
I am quite sure the loss of life as people try to cross the channel is another consequence of Brexit.
The UK’s record number of job vacancies is said to be one of the ‘pull factors’ for migrants as compared to most EU countries…
‘Your Guide on Jobs and Finding Work in the UK’:
https://www.internations.org/go/moving-to-the-uk/working
‘Youth unemployment rate in EU member states as of June 2021’:
https://www.statista.com/statistics/266228/youth-unemployment-rate-in-eu-countries/
I wish to come down ,get accomodation and lend my support next week onTuesday ,Wed and Thursday.I bring a cycle and will travel by train,advice on accomodation ,address and station please.Mob 07761221310
Norman
I would have come. For me it’s the sad state of the NHS, we need medical treatment for all, this is not acceptable!