In our second manifesto response, Mary Wimbury explores how to set minimum standards of access for all public services and essential utilities through the lens of her work and experience of social care. Getting the right care and support in coast and country areas can be challenging. These are people-focussed services, and the low population density and…
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…
The current pandemic has affected people’s lives and livelihoods in a way that, rare for a natural disaster in this country, has been felt in every part of the UK. Having experienced the horrors of Foot and Mouth Disease at the turn of the millennium, rural communities have seen something similar to the current lockdown…
While much of the Labour family is rightly occupied with their local election campaign for tomorrow, some of the early steps in preparing for ‘The English election’ of 2019 (elections in 192 District Councils, 47 Unitaries and 33 Mets on 2nd May '19), began last week. Labour:COAST&COUNTRY (LCC) brought together seven of our newer MPs…
Given the momentous vote of the 23rd June, and its implications for communities of coast and country, we urge every citizen to vote REMAIN. Labour: COAST & COUNTRY believes in the principles of cooperation and mutual support. The public sector has a vital role to play investing in a safer, more productive, more sustainable future, and…
In recent years my campaigning activity has been limited, but having been made redundant from local government I was able at last to play an active role at the general election this year. I hit the streets with gusto wearing my ex-council demographer hat to find out the lie of the land. Now, being a…
Knebworth! Scene of many historic rock gigs, and last month an excellent Labour Party branch meeting – new, old and returning members met for an evenings discussion of ‘non-urban’ issues and how Labour could approach them on the road to winning in 2020. As is often the case many of the issues here – poor…
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…
I have lived in Hampshire for a large portion of my life and worked in a local authority in a predominantly rural county, so have seen first hand the kinds of unique issues people face when living in the countryside – particularly when they are also dealing with challenging life circumstances such as unemployment, disability…
With the General Election campaign emerging from the festive break every Prospective Parliamentary Candidate (PPC) is rightly concerned with building on their exposure and contact rate in each and every constituency across the UK. For those fighting non-urban seats – be that the 30+ marginals we need to hold or win for a majority, the…
