Making every vote count in the battle of the economists
The Independent|June 26, 2024
Labour’s Alistair Strathern tells Archie Mitchell he’s winning the support of life-long Tories in the market town of Hitchin
Archie Mitchell
Making every vote count in the battle of the economists

In the picturesque Hertfordshire market town of Hitchin, the Tory and Labour general election campaigns have been neatly summed up. Contesting the seat for Labour is 34-year-old exBank of England economist Alistair Strathern, who proudly describes himself as an acolyte of “Sir Keir Starmer’s changed Labour Party”.

Hoping to hold the seat for the Conservatives is 38-year-old former HSBC executive Bim Afolami, the Treasury economic secretary elected to parliament in 2017. Leaflets for Mr Afolami’s campaign, seen by The Independent on a visit to the constituency, show he is hoping to win as a strong local champion for the area. But voters spoken to by this paper said the minister’s close association with the Conservatives nationally, as he is often wheeled out to defend the party on broadcast rounds, has tarnished his reputation in the area.

Mr Strathern has his own challenges to overcome. Elected in the Mid Bedfordshire by-election to replace Nadine Dorries in 2023, he was criticised for standing in this general election for Hitchin, with news outlets at the time describing the move as a “chicken run”. A boundary change meant his house, where he lives with his partner, was actually within the new constituency.

When The Independent met Mr Strathern in the middle of a sunny day of door-knocking he talked about his time representing Mid Bedfordshire and his plans for the area if he is re-elected. Mr Strathern said one of the biggest differences after taking that seat for Labour for the first time since it was created in 1918 was the area having a visible MP.

この記事は The Independent の June 26, 2024 版に掲載されています。

7 日間の Magzter GOLD 無料トライアルを開始して、何千もの厳選されたプレミアム ストーリー、9,000 以上の雑誌や新聞にアクセスしてください。

この記事は The Independent の June 26, 2024 版に掲載されています。

7 日間の Magzter GOLD 無料トライアルを開始して、何千もの厳選されたプレミアム ストーリー、9,000 以上の雑誌や新聞にアクセスしてください。

THE INDEPENDENTのその他の記事すべて表示
Tackling the darker side of England's finest moment
The Independent

Tackling the darker side of England's finest moment

It should have been a night of celebration. As they gathered together at the Dorchester Hotel, Sir Clive Woodward's heroes of 2003 were meant to commemorate a World Cup triumph that still represents the acme of English men’s rugby. But, as Matt Dawson explains, there was a strange atmosphere in the room. As he caught up with his colleagues two decades on from reaching the mountaintop, what became clear was just how many were struggling on the other side.

time-read
5 分  |
December 10, 2024
New generation gather pace amid England inconsistency
The Independent

New generation gather pace amid England inconsistency

Are England good? Consistently inconsistent across the whole of 2024, it is anyone's guess where England's true mean lies. But in a year where they have waved goodbye to Stuart Broad, Moeen Ali, Jonny Bairstow and James Anderson, a new generation has officially emerged.

time-read
3 分  |
December 10, 2024
Ashes to Ashworth: inside the Man U power struggle
The Independent

Ashes to Ashworth: inside the Man U power struggle

Departure of sporting director after five months shows the soap opera at Old Trafford has just got itself a new storyline

time-read
4 分  |
December 10, 2024
Slot downplays the obvious: Liverpool are Europe's best
The Independent

Slot downplays the obvious: Liverpool are Europe's best

If Jurgen Klopp turned mantras into catchphrases and viceversa, Arne Slot has a less memorable way with words. Klopp talked of mentality monsters, of turning doubters into believers, of their identity being intensity, of Liverpool 2.0.

time-read
4 分  |
December 10, 2024
EU requires more than just honeyed words from Reeves
The Independent

EU requires more than just honeyed words from Reeves

Labour keeps talking about 'resetting' our relationship with Europe but then turning down chances to advance, writes James Moore. It's time they actually did something concrete

time-read
3 分  |
December 10, 2024
Understanding the life and tragic death of Sam Cooke
The Independent

Understanding the life and tragic death of Sam Cooke

The lingering conspiracies surrounding the soulful Sixties crooner threaten to overshadow a life of music and civil rights activism, writes Mark Beaumont, not to mention a voice that would influence Otis Redding and Tina Turner

time-read
8 分  |
December 10, 2024
BAH. HUMBUG
The Independent

BAH. HUMBUG

It may seem Scrooge-like but, as overconsumption runs wild, refusing to buy pointless Christmas presents is more radical political act than cost-cutting exercise, argues Helen Coffey

time-read
4 分  |
December 10, 2024
BATTLE OF THE BEIGE
The Independent

BATTLE OF THE BEIGE

As one social media star sues another for stealing her clean girl’ aesthetic, Rachel Richardson looks at a legal fight that has the potential to change the landscape of influencers

time-read
5 分  |
December 10, 2024
GCSE English is dying, this is how we bring it back to life
The Independent

GCSE English is dying, this is how we bring it back to life

Pearson, one of the three leading exam boards in the UK, has warned that urgent reform at GSCE level is needed. If English (as a subject) is to survive at both A-Level and higher education, it needs to be less pale, male and stale.

time-read
4 分  |
December 10, 2024
The last thing civil servants need is to babysit tech bros
The Independent

The last thing civil servants need is to babysit tech bros

There is a deep irony in a government that has kept making the same sort of mistakes now lecturing its civil servants who have to deal with the consequences) that they should adopt the test-and-learn culture” of the best digital companies and first-class” government projects.

time-read
3 分  |
December 10, 2024