Simon Bowkett, Labour’s candidate for the 2015 General Election in South Dorset, has welcomed Labour’s advances in the recent local elections – but has cautioned that the Party will not be celebrating yet.
Speaking after South Dorset Labour Party gained three seats in Weymouth & Portland to become the largest political group on the Council, Simon Bowkett told us:
“We set ourselves a target of two gains from the Tories in order to become the largest group – so to win three was a very encouraging result – and we missed out on a fourth by just five votes. We took the prospect of leading this Council seriously which is why we set out our ambitions for the Borough in our Vision leaflet. We had very positive feedback on that – not only on the doorstep, but also from the local business community that is crying out for the Council to show political leadership in order to bring investment, regeneration and better jobs back to the Borough.
Local Labour activists saw their candidates for Westham East and Tophill West make gains at the expense of the Conservatives, and then make a third gain in Wyke Regis – taking the seat previously held by the former-Tory Independent Geoff Petherick.
Meanwhile, Purbeck District Council – parts of which are also in the South Dorset constituency -turned from being a Conservative council to no overall control – prompting increased speculation that South Dorset might become a key marginal seat at next year’s General Election.
Simon Bowkett said:
“While obviously encouraged, we are taking nothing for granted from these results. Richard Drax’s majority is 7500 – which of course is a big challenge – but we are now focused on working hard for the people of the Borough and bringing real change – that is the platform we stood on.
Our area is still in the grip of a cost of living crisis. We have seen only this week that Weymouth has the highest rate of part-time workers in the country, and that Weymouth & Portland is a home repossession hotspot. Referrals to our local foodbank in the first quarter of this year were up by almost 50% on last year. We have the mess with Condor to sort out, the on-going uncertainty over jobs at the Land Registry and the Verne prison, and we are still set to lose our Search & Rescue helicopter. The challenges are significant – but we are up to them.
This area has not been served well by having a Conservative-led council or a Conservative MP. Labour councillors and I will now be looking to rebuild the trust and confidence of local people by working hard to implement our vision and to make Weymouth & Portland a place to be proud of again, with more investment, thriving enterprises, more homes and more and better jobs for local people.”
