In the last summer of 2013, I was interviewed on Radio Norfolk. They had recently heard about my campaign to get the Labour party to launch a “Rural manifesto” to reconnect with non-urban voters. Some had even read my Rural manifesto proposal – over-long and badly written, though it was. It was a terrifying experience,…
Tag: Jack Eddy
Off the Beaten Tracks
A recent study by Labour has warned that more than 30 million miles of bus journeys have been lost to cuts, leaving many people and communities isolated. And it is Britain’s rural areas that are hit worst. The Labour frontbench’s excellent new shadow secretary of state for transport, Michael Dugher, claims that vital rural routes…
Getting off the bottom rung and into power in rural seats
So, the fantastic work of Labour activists, promoted by Jack Eddy from Labour: Coast & Country and spearheaded by Huw-Irranca Davies MP, has been recognised. The Rural Manifesto has been given the green-light by Ed Miliband – now comes the time to develop innovative and appealing policy for coast & country areas in order to fill it.…
Rural Revolution Required
At the NPF on the 19th July, Ed Miliband announced that Labour will develop and launch a ‘Non-Urban’ Manifesto for the 2015 General Election. This presents Labour with a tremendous opportunity to lay out a progressive vision of a non-urban Britain that is prosperous, fair and vibrant. As such, this manifesto must focus on youth. Up…
Towards a More Resilient, SME Friendly Rural Economy
As a One Nation Labour Party we need to expand our horizons beyond haphazard thinking on rural issues in order to secure a sustainable economy for Britain’s countryside and reach out to the rural electorate. What must be recognised is that rural areas are subject to an intrinsic ‘separation’, a root cause of so many…
The Rural Manifesto proposal: empowering rural Labour
“Your most precious possession is not your financial assets. You most precious possession is the people you have working there, and what they carry around in their heads, and their ability to work together” These words by Robert Reich help explain the purpose of the Rural Manifesto: to maximise the potential of the Labour movements…