Mark Field MP: Some urgent lessons from Ealing Southall

Mark Field is MP for Cities of London and Westminster.

The Conservatives under David Cameron have made tremendous progress to encourage and engage our Party members in community cohesion projects across the UK.

However I believe that our by-election campaign in Ealing Southall may have done lasting damage to the Party’s outreach work in the British Asian Communities.

For a start I fail to understand why MPs such as Dominic Grieve and Paul Goodman whose constituencies are within ten miles or so of Ealing Southall and who have worked enthusiastically with their local Muslim, Hindu and Sikh communities over many years, building trust and support, were not brought in to advise on the  strategy of this campaign.   

The centralised imposition of a Sikh candidate, who first became associated with the Party ten days before the by-election was called and whose most recent political activity had been attendance at a Labour Party fundraiser in mid-June, always had the makings of a fiasco.  The way in the sensitivities of local Tory activists were bypassed amounted to contempt towards our supporters and the electorate at large. Building trust and support amongst ethnic groups can never be a quick fix - it has to the culmination of consistent work and commitment.

This potential calamity was clearly spelt out by local folk as soon as the normal candidate selection process was discarded in favour of CCHQ adopting the photogenic son of a prominent local businessman with no previous links to the Party. Our  consequent  attempts to woo the Sikh vote in Southall by exploiting divisions which have wracked the local Sikh and Hindu communities for decades also struck many as blatant opportunism. This warning was conveyed privately to many senior members of the Conservative Party  as the campaign progressed but it was apparently ignored.

To many neutral observers these actions betrayed a failure by our Party to treat sensitively the potentially explosive racial divisions within Ealing Southall. For sure the defection of five local Labour councillors, all Sikhs and  whose ringleader was someone who only days before had failed to secure the Labour nomination for the by-election, made for good headlines at the start of the campaign. However, it became increasingly evident that the Conservatives had been manipulated by this dissident group, who were misleadingly presented  to the public as having defected on ideological grounds.

Worse still these self styled community leaders failed to deliver much more than a block vote of five. As a result, in spite of a frenetic and energetic PR campaign, our vote effectively flatlined at 22.5% - and this in a seat where in the 50 years to 1997 the Conservative share of the vote never dipped below 30%.

As the national political bandwagon moves on from west London my sympathies lie with the dedicated local Conservative association and our ruling Group on Ealing Council who are now left with the unenviable task of sorting out a divided and demoralised local Conservative force. They won control of the council last year and  I know from my time working  with Ealing's Conservative activists that over many years they have worked tirelessly to build relations with local ethnic communities. Much of this effort now lies in tatters.

From my own experience as an inner London MP over the past six years working alongside a sizeable Chinese and Bangladeshi population, I know that there is no substitute for respectful and patient work alongside British Asian communities to promote harmony and understanding.  Even in the highly pressurised atmosphere of a by-election we had a wonderful opportunity over the past three weeks to show the country at large that modern Conservatism embraces these values.

Comments

[Jones]

Agreed, but it was a by election not a GE and thus you have to fight the seat (and for every vote) as if it were your last (so to speak).

That means not going down the local, but moreover the national route.

See what DC had to here, whatever the consequence. It was a one stop attempt to grab an MP.

[SpudHead]

Ouch...someone isn't on message today

[David]

This blog is never one to make a mountain out of a molehill, is it. Really.

[Man in a Shed]

If we made mistakes then lets learn from them - there is little to be gained from doing otherwise.

I have to say it worries me that there appears to be a different sort of politics for Asian areas from the rest of the country.

Out of interest what are the substantive and verifiable differences in what voters of Asian origin want from voters of other backgrounds ?

What worries me is that all the parties are fighting to deliver block votes, rather than win arguments. ( Can anyone remember what the central issues that came up from these campaigns were ? I can't from having observed the national media.) If Asian politics is about block votes and winning over communities that democracy based on the individual and their opinions is dead. That should worry everyone - I hope I'm wrong on this.

[Andrew Ian Dodge]

Well put Mark. Let's just hope they are mindful of your advice.

It hard to explain the lay of the land to those that have never experienced Southall. The tensions there have little to do with anglo vs minorities, but far more to do with inter-minority. There are clashes based from the tribal level on up and its very complicated.

Trying to play it for electoral gain is a mistake and is a game the Conservatives just cannot win.

[Henry Mayhew - Ukipper / authentic conservative]

Mark Field made a very positive impression on me when I did the PPC selection weekend that he ran. He is a top bloke.

However, this post is as unhelpful to DC as it is brilliant. The Conservative Party can't cope with this level of public dissention. You should all make your minds up either to join me and my policy-wonk, dead-ender, mates in UKIP or back your leader. It is becoming no fun to criticise you any more. You're objects of sympathy.

[ACT]

A very good post, and not just because I agree with it. The point to be made very strongly in Mark's favour if that he *could* have said in public this *before* the result and thereby added to the damage the leadership had already done to the Party's prospects by foisting Lit on Southall. Indeed, Mark could even have privately briefed to hacks his opinions (the side of the mouth technique which Dave's mates are all too well aware of, cf. their bad mouthing of Brady before he quit). But he did neither. As far as I'm aware, he expressed his dissent privately, and has now honestly spoken up in public. It's a credit to him, and it's a crying shame that the clique round Cameron are simply too arrogant to learn from *their* mistakes.

[Sally Stewart]

There should not be an automatic assumption that there has to be an Asian candidate in an area with a large Asian community. In some places the divisions within the community may make it wiser to field a neutral candidate who can unite the party's supporters in spite of such divisions.

[Patrick Ratnaraja]

"I know that there is no substitute for respectful and patient work alongside British Asian communities to promote harmony and understanding"

Mark you are absolutely right.

I work with EM communities in Croydon. We need a different strategy to work with the British Asian Community. Different communities have different issue and we have to understand these issues.

I work closely with the British Tamil Community trying to get them to vote for us.The only issue the Tamils are concerned about is the war in Sri Lanka and the Tamils want Peace.

The Kurdish community are more concerned about immigration.

We have to address these issues and talk to leaders of these communities.

I feel that Andrew PellingMP should be appointed as a Shadow Minister to work with certain Communities.

[Alex Fisher]

This is a highly pertinent article; Mark Field is entirely correct.

Decisions taken in relation to Ealing Southall were taken by people with absolutely no knowledge of the area.

A vocal group in support of Lit convinced us he was making real inroads; he wasn't.

[Tired (and Angry) Anon]

I have to agree with Mark about this campaign. A major disappointment. But beyond what he says about dealing with the ethnic communities in future, I think there was a much starker lesson from Ealing.

Having campaigning in Ealing for five or six days, I actually sensed that we'd finally got our by-election act together. The last by-election we won (and even this was a hold rather than a gain!) was William Hague in Richmond in 1989.

Since then, we have been out-manouvered and out horse-powered, first by Labour, and since 1997 massively by the Lib Dems. Nobody with any innovative ideas or spunk ever seems to run these things.

The first sign I had that all was not what it seemed was not the £4,800 "donation". It was when we were told by a senior campaign official, probably an agent, that the eve of poll letter from the leader of Ealing Council that we were delivering was called "knocking up"! Anyone with a brain and a little bit of campaign experience knows that delivering an eve-of-poll leaflet is called "leafleting", and knocking on the doors of Ps and Cs on election day is "knocking up".

In short, we need to get a proper, competent, talented, grafting, innovative, "think outside the box and some" by-election team in place. The best of our campaigners from across the country.

Grant Shapps had some great ideas, but these things can never be a one-man show. We also need draft strategies in place for all constituencies where we have anything more than 10% of the vote in the case of a by-election. Issues, links with community leaders, a proper non-hubris assessment away from the slightly delusionary atmosphere that always takes over when a by-election actually gets called.

We have thousands of foot-soldiers and activists up and down the country working hard week in week out, that if harnessed properly could act like the shock troops that Lib Dems frequently pour into constituencies. It would also help if our MPs played a greater role, just like the Lib Dems, in campaigning. Our MPs should have been there day in, day out, not making occasional or one-off visits.

If we want to start winning these things, we need to start behaving like winners.

[Treacle]

Tired & Angry

Actually it was probably not an Agent as most Professional Agents and campaign staff were specifically kept away from the campaign and only called up in a hurry with 8 days to go.

Captain Mainwaring and his boys looked after this one.

[Roland Smith]

Vicious, horribly well targeted .....but necessary critique.

[Ted]

Sorry but this is a knee jerk and unhelpful pice of work. The morning after isn't the time to do a proper review of any activity. It needs to be dispassionate and look at both what worked and didn't work. This is an input to a review and, presented as it is, doesn't take us forward in any way just provides ammunition to our opponents.

Its all about Southall - what happened in Ealing where we have a good council presence?

[Unity]

Now - having heard that from one of your own - do you lot appreciate why us lefties were not only entirely unconcerned by the defections but actually going out of our way to stress that they would cause you far more by way of problems than they would ever bring in by way of votes.

The point has been made several times over the course of the campaign that not only does Labour have a good forty years experience in handling the communal politics that all too easily crop up in Asian communities but also in managing out the worst of the factionalism that can arise from it, but that opposition parties are also making a terrible mistake if they think they can just blunder in to such situations and play the communal game for some cheap votes.

Mark Field is absolutely spot-on in his commentary in regards to the challenges of building support in some minority communities - and that's coming from a Labour Party member - and you really do need to listen and learn very carefully from what he has to say.

Mark:

Excellent commentary and, even as an opponent, its reassuring to know that there's at least one MP on your side who understands the demands and complexities of working constructively within minority communities.

Of course, that marks your card on our side as potentially dangerous opponent in future elections, but I suspect you may well take that as a compliment.

[Watervole]

Mr. Field, honourable or otherwise, not being at the scene, has failed to appreciate the benefits of the Ealing campaign. Far from being damaging to outreach work, the integrated campaign, with people from widely varying backgrounds integrating to achieve a common goal, was something that was obvious to everyone in the campaign team. It was a demonstration of true social integration - not the patronising pigeonholing approach that Labour has espoused over the years. Mr. Field would do well to speak from a more informed basis and support David Cameron's inspired choice of an excellent candidate instead of listening to gossip. It was also obvious that any local association choice, however worthy, would have led to a really resounding failure instead of having the momentum to carry forward to a general election - by which time Sharma et al. will be proven to be hollow straws. I have not always agreed with David Cameron but it is essential that the party gets strategic, not tactical. This is no time for egos and I would defy anyone, in the short time available to prepare for this campaign, to come up with a candidate that could carry 8,000 votes from a cold start. When looked at from this point of view, Tony Lit was the only choice.

[Derek Tomnay]

Tired and Angry is factually wrong. The last by election we won was at Uxbridge in 1997. This was John Randall holding a Conservative seat on an increased majority. It would appear that the by election campaign in Southall was every bit as inept as the By Elections campaigns ran by John Earl & others 1990-97.

[Benedict White]

Mark Field, whilst you may have some very valid points, it is not helpful to air them in the full glare of the internet.

Grant kept us from sinking without trace, we must remember that.

We used to do by-elections, but not since 1982 have we taken one. We need to rebuild the machine and learn.

It is true that the campaign had a number of gaffes, particuarly the Lit donation, though the way Labour used that is not going to help them raise funds, so there is a sting in the tail in it for them.

[Alex Swanson]

it was a by election not a GE and thus you have to fight the seat (and for every vote) as if it were your last (so to speak).

Absolutely disagree. A by-election can only very rarely change the national situation: so it's actually the time to take a long term view.

I've seen the short term view taken so often - in fact "hang next time, let's focus on this" seems to be party orthodoxy - and the inevitable result is long term decline and failure. That's why the Tories lost Scotland, and the inner cities: because twenty years ago the leadership of the time decided they weren't needed for victory. At the time, of course, they weren't. But now the gains made then are being torn down by a government that has a rock solid hinterland from which to attack elsewhere.

[Watervole]

Slightly a side point - perhaps Labour Party funds will shrink even more when potential donors realise that their well-intentioned donations will be taken down in evidence and used (out of context) against them....

[johnC]

'The last by election we won was at Uxbridge in 1997.'

I'm afraid that's wrong too. Following Uxbridge, we have had by-election wins in Beckenham, Eddisbury, Kensington and Chelsea and, most recently, Bromley and Chislehurst.

[HF]

I do not welcome this public statement from Mr Field but he has made it so we deal with it. Presumably he helped at the ES by election for at least half the day light hours this past fortnight?

Turning to the points he made we should look at this in organisational terms.

Problem 1 selection of candidates. John Maples & predecessor Bernard Jenkin are MPs so can only be engaged on a part time basis. Apparantly one of them presided over a "dont select" message to the Association and they ignored the age & health of the late MP.

Problem 2 running the campaign organisation and its strategy. Grant Shapps MP. The article above says that there was a lack of consultation. Anything to do with another part time MP trying to do too much?

At least with Lord Ashcroft +2 we get some full time people taking on (I understand) Shapps role and part of the prioritisation of seats. But the people that told ES not to hold their selection got it badly wrong.

[Dismayed]

Does anyone know whether Stephen Gilbert and Gavin Barwell worked on the Ealing campaign?

BTW, the only campaign communication that I received from my association was an invitation to a £40 per ticket drinks party with Cameron and Lit on Monday evening. Typical!

[David Gold]

Some people should offer their advice in private, not on a public site like this. Yet another lesson that could be learnt is that of Alastair Campbell who removed anything from his memoirs which could have been used by opponents to attack Gordon Brown. The book, as a result, is dull but at least he cannot be blamed for any future damage suffered by Brown.

[Raj]

Umm, Mark, why did you raise the issue of the vote not dropping under 30%? You guys had a slight increase over the 2005 election. Why raise it as an indiciation of "failure", when it was even a small advance?

Did you make this comment after 2005?

[Niallster]

So let me get this straight.

Wonder Boy got scammed by 5 disaffected Sikhs whose leader was pissed off because he did not get the Labour nomination for the seat. In addition they crowbarred in to the Conservative nomination another Sikh and Labour donor who with the others brought in a total 6 Sikh votes. Locals on the ground told them they were being scammed but Wonder Boy and the Eton Posse knew better as usual.

Result total humiliation for the Tories again.

I vote UKIP now and liked the other UKIP poster I am having to stop laughing at Wonder Boys antics at its gone from funny to cruel.

Brown will call an election by October at the latest. Labourites will vote Labour Conservatives will stay at home and we will have a full five years of the Brown Terror.

Call me when you’ve dumped Wonder Boy and want to be Conservatives again.

David Davis prepare yourself to save what I still call MY party.

[Dismayed]

David Gold is the PPC for Eltham. He should have declared his interest. His comment reflects the new Cameroon culture of trying to close down debate in the party. The latest example is reported by Andrew Pierce in today's Telegraph.

"David Cameron has been privately rebuffed by his party's most senior MPs after trying to restrict them from speaking out on contentious issues.

In a showdown with the executive of the backbench 1922 Committee, Mr Cameron demanded that statements from party groups should be first cleared through Conservative Party headquarters.

Mr Cameron, in the first clash with the powerful executive since he became leader, singled out the traditionalist Cornerstone Group of MPs for particular criticism in Wednesday's meeting, which was held behind closed doors."

[Tom W.]

Wow, an honorable conservative!

I wish we had some over here in the U.S., but then again, the term means something entirely different, doesn't it?

Nice clear-eyed post.

[Jeremy]

Oh come on. In May we all but destroyed Labour and the Lib Dems in the local elections. Best result ever. Polls are fickle and this is one result only. The Brown bounce will end when sadly all the economic checkens come home to roost. Brown has so many flaws as a Prime Minister it's hard to know where to start. However one of the proiblems is that DC is actually a decent human being. If there is a lesson to be learnt from both labour and the Lib Dems it is to start going for the man not the ball.

[Tim Roll-Pickering]

Tired (and Angry) Anon at 13:11: I had a curiously converse experience yesterday - being given a bundled of leaflets saying when polling closed (although a generic leaflet so not even any details as to where the polling station was - not the most helpful in a seat with many stations literally on one side of the boundary line) with a list of houses for targetting and being told to knock on doors to deliver them. It wasn't at all clear if this was "targetted deliveries with a human face" like some of the leafletting I'd done earlier in the week (and why on earth did anyone think voters who'd been absolutely ***DELUGED*** with election literature and door knocking wanted to be bothered just by someone delivering in person?) or actual knocking up. I wonder how many others just delivered, realising the slog.

I also saw how slow we were at processing data - people who'd voted at 10am were being knocked up ten hours later, just annoying them (one house even put up a sign saying they had voted!) and wasting our time.

On a general point relating to Mark's post, I get the impression quite a few people privately raised concerns on many of these matters, but their anxieties were simply dismissed. Sometimes speaking out is the only way to effect positive change.

[Ranjit Kumar]

What Mark has to say is not pleasant but it is very true. How did our vote go from 30% to less than 25%? The problem is that nationally we have strength but we are not streamlining our message. I think values such as strong families, tough on crime, private enterprise, opposition to uncontrolled immigration and other values are British values - some minority communities also endorse these values.

Labour post 94 understood that to win it had to look at how the Tories won. By definition the British are rather a conservative lot. This includes newer arrivals. We have to connect with these people as British voters not as sikhs or muslims. At the same we have to ensure that our message strikes people as a national concept married to the local. Something along the lines of ‘modern values in a traditional setting’ is required.

[John]

As a Lib Dem i can't help but wonder whether the Tory vote would have been LESS if you didn't have the bollywood good looks of Tony Lit!

I know Southall - my best mate of twenty years has lived there for ten of them - it never seemed a great prospect for Lib Dems or Tories - I would imagine that a large part of the majority were older sikhs who will never change.

My guess is that the Lib Dems won a ward (Hanwell)given Jo Cowling's talk of `worried looks on the Labour faces` but the central part of Southall `proper` and to the west pulled back sizeable Labour majorities. I would imagine the other areas were a pretty mixed bag.

[Joseph]

Could it be because some Labour voters got up out of their sickbed to vote and the Tories who would crawl on their knees through broken glass did not?
" Shame innit mate"?
How words come back to haunt!!!

[Someone]

"Mr. Field, honourable or otherwise, not being at the scene, has failed to appreciate the benefits of the Ealing campaign."

Actually, Mark spent quite a bit of time there earlier in the month, so had, I would imagine, a pretty good idea of the campaign's nuances.

[malcolm]

As always Ted I agree wholeheartedly with your post. Perhaps everything Mark Field has suggested may be right, I don't know. Was today the right time to say it? Absolutely not.
There may well be lessons that need to be learned but a reaction only hours after the polls have closed does not seem to be the right time at all.

[Fat Tory]

"Mr. Field would do well to speak from a more informed basis and support David Cameron's inspired choice of an excellent candidate instead of listening to gossip."

Watervole,

Will you please remove your head from CCHQ`s a..se. Mark is absolutely right in what he is saying. Gimmicks are no substitute for heavy lifting. The Tories have a pitiful record of appealing to ethnic minoroites and appointing unproven people such as Lit and Sayeeda Warsi smacks of tokenism.

There are plenty of talented Asian candidates in our party with a record of dedication and service who are simply overlooked. All because they do not get Dave a big enough headline. It`s pathetic.

[Andrew Ian Dodge]

The fact that there are those attempting to shut down debate is rather worrying and unhealthy. The only way to get it right is to make sure you knew what was going wrong.

[Dr Charles Tannock MEP]

My old colleague, Mark Field MP, from my days as a RBKC councillor days makes some important points that need addressing. As a London Region MEP anf foreign affairs spokesman I am very conscious of the fact that to be successful as an elected politician in a region as diverse as London, one inevitably has to cultivate and gain a deep knowledge of the political concerns of different communities, particularly in my case those whose Foreign Policy objectives affecting their countries of origin chime with the official views of the Conservative Party and Britain's national interest. Sometimes you cannot please all of the people all of the time and if you attempt to do that and give mixed messages it will not be very long before your inconsistencies are publicly exposed.

However, my main concern having visited Ealing Southall which I represent three times during the campaign, was that on election day itself when knocking up my PA Marie Therese Rossi and I were given only flat and house numbers rather than the names of the individual Conservative pledges who had not yet voted. Therefore, we were neither able to identify the person at the door nor ascertain whether or not they were the missing Conservative pledge, making our returns to campaign headquarters pretty worthless. Surely the purpose of knocking up is to maximise the turnout of the Conservative pledges which requires accurate information which the system used yesterday clearly did not provide.

[Frank McGarry]

Congratulations Mark Field for speaking up.
Open debate and constructive comment are healthy.

The most disturbing aspect for me is the lack of local democracy. We pay great lip service to the devolution of power down to the local level - yet we don't do it within the party? This is hypocritical of us - and wrong.

If David's autocratic behaviour were bringing us success, then perhaps it would be defensible.

[601]

"From my own experience as an inner London MP"

Oh please Cities of London and Westminister can hardly be described as having inner city charecteristics.

[David Sergeant]

"If David's autocratic behaviour were bringing us success, then perhaps it would be defensible."

David's behaviour, autocratic or otherwise, has brought great success. The problem he has is that too many people in his party think of themselves rather than the party (or country for that matter). Field may be right or wrong but as an MP publicising his view is just a cheap ego trip and a good example of one reason for losing three general elections. What Cameron was trying to do with the MPs was to suggest they sang from the same hymn sheet but they seemed to think they were too important for that.

[Dismayed]

"Oh please Cities of London and Westminister can hardly be described as having inner city charecteristics."

Mark Field represents a constituency with a multi-cultural electorate, many of whom earn small salaries (not just those who work for MPs or CCHQ).

[Tim Roll-Pickering]

Dr Charles Tannock MEP at 17:03: Have to agree - the sheets I helped to physically prepare at Broughton Road (which I suspect were similar to what you were using) were just attaching house numbers to highlighted maps. Then someone got the data off Bluechip and so actual names were available, making all the cutting and pasting worthless - why couldn't it be obtained earlier?

What I cut and pasted together was no different to the sheets I'd had for targetted leafletting (indeed I initially thought this was precisely what they were for - silly as it seemed at that stage in the afternoon, but stopping to argue with those in charge at that stage is not going to be productive).

[David Gold]

Clearly, 'Dismayed' I do not need to declare an interest as my selection is publicknowledge among those who read this site. Furthermore I don't see how I suggested closing the debate. I suggested that senior figures with advice to share should offer it in private rather than offering our opponents ammunitition. By using my real name rather than hiding behind a peculiar pen name people can clearly judge my intentions. One wonders whether you are actually a Conservative.

[HF]

Knocking up without names is utterly bewildering. Who on earth was responsible for that? Were we using Blue Chip or Merlin in ES?

PS David Gold, I post under a different name because I do not want to supply ammo to the opposition.

[Frank McGarry]

"Too many people in his party think of themselves rather than the party (or the country for that matter)."

David (Sergeant) - If you mean Ken Clarke then I totally agree.

[Michael Nye]

Total disarray, wrong call, out of touch, is there anything pleasant that a “grass roots” Tory can think to say about this unholy foul-up? Well yes there is, REPLACE CAMERON and all of his hackneyed “new thinking socialists” that have infiltrated our party.

[Adam]

Excellent analysis and spot on. Why wasn't Mark as wellas the other two mentioned MP's used is an utter mystery. I hope Cameron learns quickly from this fiascoand uses people who have many years of experience in dealing with ethnic minority voters.

[LJ]

Mark : Not a good time to publish this article.... quite a few people worked very hard in the Constituency? did you? This is a time to stand up for the party and not a time for blame.

I do not think that this has done damage with the Asian Community. In my view the party has not been damaged by this, and that is speaking from a British-Asian point of view.

Bad Timing and poor judgement on your part has damaged your reputation and your constituency.

[Old Hack]

What are the core lessons to be taken from ES?

a) The Labour Party is still riding the wave of support following the departure of Blair. Not exactly news. But this won't last for ever. We've got to be ready with a blindingly good deal for the UK public to buy into - soon. In an age of consumer politics brand is only half the product. We must not underestimate the sophistication of the British electorate. It's time to stop pissing about in Rwanda, with windmills and every other Hilton inspired stunt and start engaging intellects. Sack Hilton, hire some good thinkers.

b) the Lib Dems continue to have a reputation for surprises in by-elections. But coming second does not resonate and slowly but surely that Rennard magic is fading. They didn't get a win and they don't have an excuse to sack Ming. This is actually good news guys. But will we let these shysters off the hook again?

c) Sad to say this, but the lack of continuity and professionalism at CCHQ caused by the constant meddling of MPs and the Leadership in particular is at the core of our inability to campaign on these big set piece occasions. Nice guy that Grant Shapps is, he was no match for the likes of that fat twerp Rennard. Rennard is a pro and Shapps, like Maude, Browning etc are all amateurs with little by way of qualification or ability.

So there we are, Labour holds onto two safe seats and here we are, getting our knickers in a twist because we overinvested in an election which we were never likely to win.

Those who run CCHQ should have had the good judgment and common sense to avoid this egg on face. It is and was entirely unnecessary but does raise questions about what will happen if a genuine contest does arise in a constituency we once held with a small Labour majority.

Pray CCHQ does not get its hands on your local campaign if your local Labour MP with a 1,000 majority steps under a bus.