ConservativeHome's Seats & Candidates blog: Redditch

Unlike many of her colleagues with very small majorities, Labour MP and ex-Home Secretary Jacqui Smith is intending defending her constituency at the election.

Redditch is a very marginal constituency which Conservative candidate Karen Lumley (pictured) will be fighting for the third election in a row. She needs a swing of 2.6% to gain the seat from Jacqui Smith.

And today Ms Smith admits that Karen will probably be successful in her beatto gia the seat.

According to PoliticsHome, she tells Andrew Neil in this weekend's edition of the BBC Straight Talk programme:

“As the polls stand at the moment, it’s more likely that I’ll lose my seat than I won’t lose it, but they [the people of Redditch] elected me, they’re the people to whom I owe a responsibility.”

Karen wrote about her campaign to unseat Jacqui Smith in this Diary of a PPC last May.

Jonathan Isaby

Each week a different PPC provides us with an insight into life as a candidate and gives us a flavour of their own campaign and interests. If you are a candidate and are keen to be featured, please email Jonathan Isaby.

This week's diary is written by Karen Lumley, candidate for Redditch in Worcestershire, where she will be challenging the Home Secretary, Jacqui Smith, who has been MP for the seat since 1997. Karen stood in the seat in 2001 and then gain in 2005, when the seat was retained by Labour with a majority of 2,716. Boundary changes reduce Jacqui Smith's notional majoirty further to 2,163 (based on the Rallings and Thrasher figures), meaning that Karen needs a swing of 2.6% to gain the seat. You can read more about Karen's campaign on her website.

Monday

The first bank holiday in May. Have had a brilliant weekend at our caravan but now it's back to work with the team in Redditch. I am meeting Betty for lunch today. Betty is one of my “stuffers” and also one of those who organises my ladies' luncheon club. We are looking at a new venue today but when we get there we find that it is closing down! I am really behind Jeremy Hunt's campaign to save our local. I’m afraid that the pub we visited today is yet another victim of this Labour Government...

We have county elections here in Redditch as well as the Europeans so are busy trying to increase our representation. We have an excellent team of candidates and I’m hoping they will all win. We have two out of the eight seats at the moment, so I am hoping for great things. We are out this week with Brandon and Jane and guess what one of the main issues is on the doorstep is tonight? Yes, it’s our MP’s expenses and that bath plug is raised again and again. It saddens me that the public perception of politicians is so low at the moment, especially when I am out with my councillors and council candidates, who all work so hard for their local communities. We have a good team out, as you can se,e and it is a pleasure to be out and about with them.