The Labour party plans to begin their campaign for several upcoming byelections by drawing attention to the rising cost of mortgages in constituencies traditionally held by the Conservative party. This marks a change in strategy as the party will now actively aim to win seats currently held by the Liberal Democrats.
Rachel Reeves, the shadow chancellor, is to visit Kingswood, the constituency vacated by Chris Skidmore, the Conservative who quit as an MP last week in protest at the government’s planned new rounds of oil and gas licences.
Reeves plans to showcase a study conducted by the Labour Party on the increasing expenses of mortgages in 42 constituencies that are considered part of the “blue wall,” a term coined by the Liberal Democrats to refer to wealthy areas typically controlled by the Conservative Party and located in the outskirts of cities.
During Reeves’s trip to Kingswood, located near Bristol, she will announce that over 100,000 households in the 42 constituencies will have to renew their mortgages this year. The majority of these households will be facing significant payment increases.
Additionally, the selection of blue wall constituencies, such as Esher and Walton, Wimbledon, and Winchester, for the analysis demonstrates a newfound confidence within the Labour party that they can appeal to disillusioned centrist Conservatives. This highlights the ongoing effects of the fiscal crisis that was triggered by Liz Truss’s short stint in government.
A spokesperson for the Labour Party stated that the Mid Bedfordshire byelection of last year, in which the party successfully defended the previously Conservative stronghold against a strong Liberal Democrat competition, demonstrated that there are no longer any areas that are off-limits for us.
“In Mid Beds we could have rolled out the yellow carpet and told the Lib Dems: ‘We’ll leave you to it.’ But we fought them and won. It shows quite how far we have come in such areas since 2019.
Rachel and Keir have been tasked with persuading voters that they can rely on us when it comes to the economy, and that we prioritize fiscal responsibility.
According to information from the Bank of England and the House of Commons library, an analysis of mortgages shows that out of 111,600 mortgages up for renewal in 42 regions this year, 2,800 are located in Kingswood.
According to Labour, families who previously had fixed-term mortgages are now facing an average monthly payment increase of £240. However, due to the higher average house prices in blue wall seats, the average for these specific areas could potentially be as high as £385.
The specific date for the Kingswood byelection has yet to be determined, but it is anticipated to be in mid-February. This date will likely coincide with the byelection in Wellingborough, Northamptonshire, which was initiated due to a recall petition from local voters in support of removing the current Conservative MP, Peter Bone.
After a watchdog discovered that he had bullied a staff member and exposed his genitals near their face, Bone was suspended from parliament for six weeks.
According to Reeves, British homeowners, including long-time Conservative supporters, have faced financial struggles due to 14 years of economic underperformance.
“The repercussions of the Conservatives’ catastrophic mini-budget, which caused the economy to crash and led to a sharp rise in mortgage rates, are still being experienced by countless struggling families.”
Source: theguardian.com
