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Mega By-Election Week : Day One (February 21st 2017)

Mega By-Election Week : Day One (February 21st 2017)

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This week will see six by-elections but not all on the same day. There is a by-election tonight, three tomorrow night and on Thursday two Parliamentary by-elections that may break a duck that has lasted anything from 35 years to 57 years and create a vacancy at the head of the Opposition. But first, as they say in all the great stage plays, we have the opening curtain Winklebury on Basingstoke and Deane (Con defence, resignation of sitting member) Result…

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Brexit: We wuz robbed but is Tony the one to stop it.

Brexit: We wuz robbed but is Tony the one to stop it.

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Don Brind on the Blair intervention Like many 48 per centers I believe last year’s referendum victory for Leave was built on a mountain of mendacity, epitomised by that bus promising £350 million for the NHS. So it was good to hear Tony Blair declare, in his speech to Open Britain last week, that Brexit “will not mean more money for the NHS but less; actually it probably means a wholesale rebalancing of our healthcare towards one based on private…

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Losses for the LDs and Tories in latest local elections plus preview of one more contest tonight

Losses for the LDs and Tories in latest local elections plus preview of one more contest tonight

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Bollington on Cheshire East (Con defence, resignation of sitting member) Result: Bollington First 939 (51% +14%), Conservative 319 (17% -14%), Labour 239 (13% -8%), Liberal Democrat 198 (11% unchanged), Green 162 (9%, no candidate at last election) Bollington First GAIN from Conservative with a majority of 620 (33%) on a swing of 14% from Conservative to Bolington First St. Thomas on Dudley (Lab defence, resignation of sitting member) Result: Labour 1,466 (61% +4%), United Kingdom Independence Party 653 (27% +5%),…

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Tonight sees biggest round of local by-elections so far this year

Tonight sees biggest round of local by-elections so far this year

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Vote aggregate of the year’s contests so far Bollington on Cheshire East (Con defence, resignation of sitting member) Result of council at last election (2015): Conservatives 53, Labour 16, Independents 3, Middlewich First 3, Liberal Democrats 2, Nantwich Independents 2, Ratepatyers 2, Bollington First 1 (Conservative majority of 24) Result of ward at last election (2015) : Emboldened denotes elected Bollington First 1,743, 1,380 (37%) Conservatives 1,435, 1,403 (31%) Labour 1,006 (21%) Liberal Democrats 511, 427 (11%) EU Referendum Result:…

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Hilary Benn. The Peacemaker who should be the next Labour leader

Hilary Benn. The Peacemaker who should be the next Labour leader

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Embed from Getty Images Leadership talk is in the air. Names are tossed into the ring, trampled on and tossed out again. I have a simple view. When you look at the enormous task of transforming Labour’s fortunes there is only one name worth considering. So: sorry Yvette, Lisa, Angela, Liz, Seema, Chuka, Keir, Clive, Dan. I love you all and admire your various talents. But Hilary Benn is the only person capable of dragging Labour back into electoral contention….

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The Lib Dem local by-election band-wagon continues with two new gains – both from CON

The Lib Dem local by-election band-wagon continues with two new gains – both from CON

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It’s getting to the stage where double digit swings to the LDs are the norm Kingswood and Hazel Leys on Corby (Ind defence, elected as Labour, caused by disqualification of sitting member) Result: Labour 610 (65% +11%), Conservative 252 (27% +13%), Green Party 82 (9% -1%) Labour HOLD with a majority of 358 (38%) on a swing of 1% from Labour to Conservative Fairford North on Cotswold (Con defence, caused by resignation of sitting member) Result: Liberal Democrat 610 (68%…

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Local By-Election Preview : February 9th 2017

Local By-Election Preview : February 9th 2017

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Kingswood and Hazel Leys on Corby (Ind defence, elected as Labour, caused by disqualification of sitting member) Result of council at last election (2015): Labour 24, Conservatives 5 (Labour majority of 19) Result of ward at last election (2015): Emboldened denotes elected Labour 1,522, 1,472, 1,450 (54%) United Kingdom Independence Party 606 (22%) Conservatives 399, 314, 303 (14%) Green Party 275, 218 (10%) EU Referendum Result: REMAIN 11,470 (36%) LEAVE 20,611 (64%) on a turnout of 74% (No local ward…

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Brexit. There’s everything to play for

Brexit. There’s everything to play for

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Embed from Getty Images My vantage point a couple of thousand metres up in the French Alps didn’t make Labour’s agonising over Article 50 any less depressing for me than it was for colleagues back at Westminster. For what it’s worth my sympathies were with those Labour MPs who felt, at this precise point in the process, that the referendum result trumped their pro European principles. But I wholly agree with MP Paul Flynn who tweeted “Anti-Brexiteers, who reluctantly accepted…

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