In July the SW Co-op Party and Devon Labour Campaign Forum in Devon held their summer conference focusing on Labour’s rural policy. Speakers included Luke Pollard MP, Shadow Secretary of State for Environment, Farming and Rural Affairs, and local members, councillors and candidates. Opening the conference Luke Pollard MP described three crises facing Britain right…
It was a privilege to join Labour Coast and Country recently to talk about how Labour can rebuild support in towns, rural areas, and coastal communities. Currently, the electoral map shows England as a sea of blue, with small clusters of red in and around our cities. Our road to power must encompass towns and…
A contribution to the ‘Challenging Times’ edition of SERA’s New Ground – a non-urban perspective highlighting the challenges of how we do politics and are governed. Labour needs to think through – devolution and localism, particularly in England; Labour’s organisation & offer to non-urban Britain; and how to work with the green groups for the…
In June of this year I came across a BuzzFeed article 21 maps that will change how you think about Britain written by Tom Chivers. They are all interesting, some fascinating and at least the last two of particular interest to us, as Coast & Country: No.20, GB journey to work flows, from the geographic blog of CASA at UCL (Centre for…
Sunday lunch-time of the first day of Conference 2015 saw over 40 members from across England and Wales gather to reflect on what next for Labour in communities of coast and country. After moving to a larger room to accommodate everyone more comfortably, a wide ranging discussion occupied those present for almost two hours. That discussion…
Sadly it isn’t a journey of engagement with a Labour led government, but a renewed period of opposition – lets hope it doesn’t become unduly introspective as we all endeavour to work out what worked, and what did not – and more importantly what’s required to win in 2020. As a Co-Founder of Labour: Coast…
In considering the particular needs of rural communities and individuals, the Labour Party must appreciate that these are as much in and of the mainstream as city-dwellers. We share the same concerns for the big issues of the national economy, defence, jobs, immigration etc. A Rural Manifesto focused solely on our special issues would be…
