Pauls' Campaign Diary

Campaign Diary Monday 1 July – My five-point plan for Eastbourne

People are talking about Labour’s five-point plan for Eastbourne. Unlike the other parties, Labour is offering a positive message of change. We are talking about the issues that matter to local people: the town centre, policing, local schools, the DGH, water quality and the environment, and regeneration of our town.

There are just a few hours left of this campaign before the bulk of the electorate go to the polls. Many postal votes have already been cast. People are still making their minds up. I don’t believe the opinion polls for a moment. As a veteran of the 1992 election campaign, I know how wrong polls can be, and what it’s like to wake up on a Friday morning with another five years of the Tories. That’s why we’re campaigning down to the wire, taking nothing for granted.

Pauls' Campaign Diary

Campaign Diary Saturday 29 June – All aboard the Labour double-decker bus

The last Saturday before polling day, and we made a huge impact with our double-decker bus. We stopped in Langney, Hampden Park, and along the seafront at Holywell, and cruised around the town in glorious sunshine. It was a great day, meeting voters, and making it clear that Labour in Eastbourne is fighting hard for every vote. A special word of thanks to Steven Wood whose bus it is, and to everyone who came along to join in the fun. 

Pauls' Campaign Diary

Campaign Diary 23 June Hampden Park

A great morning in Hampden Park around the Hydneye area, delivering our new leaflet. The shopworker in the Morrison’s was on her own. Her co-worker had not come to work. She was running the whole place by herself, dealing with customers, and watching out for looters. This is really unacceptable.

One chap shouted ‘no junk mail’ after I’d leafleting his house. Of course, I just kept walking. But it did make me reflect a bit. As we just commemorated D-Day, when those 17 and 18 year-olds stormed the beaches of Normandy to defend our democracy, and as that morning young women and men were dying in Ukraine to defend their democracy, I thought how far from ‘junk’ the leaflet was.

Pauls' Campaign Diary

Campaign Diary 22 June Eastbourne Summer in Little Chelsea

Grove Road and South Street were pedestrianised for a few hours and people flocked to enjoy the sunshine, music, and street food. Our Labour team chatted to people. I saw the Lib Dems briefly, not didn’t see the Tories. Local restaurateur Mozmil Hussein has a new venture at the top of Grove Road, and he was offering his superb Bangladeshi food to raise funds for the victims of the floods in Bangladesh. This was a wonderful community event, and proof that there are few better places than Eastbourne in the summer sunshine.

Pauls' Campaign Diary

Campaign Diary 22 June Hastings

Our twinned seat is Hastings & Rye, and we headed over to help Helena over the line. The morning was a combination of delivery of postal vote reminders, and canvassing local residents. I had a few Reform UK, a few ‘won’t votes’, but plenty of Tory switchers. People are switching directly from Tory to Labour because they want to see the back of Sunak, and want to turn the page.

Pauls' Campaign Diary

Campaign Diary 21 June Seaside

We’re focussing on the Devonshire ward in Eastbourne, where there are plenty of Labour supporters. We enjoyed loads of doorstep conversations, and listened to local people’s concerns. This is a strong community, but people want more police on the streets and an end to the antisocial behaviour that blights lives. People are sick of the Tories. The betting scandal, which speaks volumes about the priorities of Conservative MPs, is causing real anger. It’s one rule for them, and another for the rest of us, is what people are saying in Eastbourne.

Pauls' Campaign Diary

Campaign Diary 20 June Eastbourne

In the evening, local Labour members came together to pick up the new Labour leaflet and plan the last two weeks of the campaign.

I spoke briefly about the Labour and Tory campaigns. It is incredible that the Tory campaign has been so blighted by gaffes, missteps, and poor decisions. From a snap election announcement that took everyone by surprise, including the people making it, to a series of ludicrous errors, to desperate policy pronouncements such as national service, the Tory campaign has been a shambles. Now, the Tories are mired in a sleaze scandal, with growing evidence of insider betting among Tory candidates.

Labour’s campaign has been disciplined, focussed, and gaffe-free. Our manifesto has landed well, and policies such as Great British Energy and more police are proving popular. We will be out and about across the town, and meet as many people as possible. On the Saturday before polling day, we have a very special campaigning surprise in store!

Pauls' Campaign Diary

Campaign Diary 20 June Hastings and Hampden Park

The postal votes are landing, and people in the key battleground seat of Hastings & Rye are deciding how to vote. One fifth of votes are by post. I headed over to Hastings to help get out the Labour postal vote. The sun was shining on the seafront, and hand delivering named and addressed envelopes was hot work. Afterwards, I got the train back to Hampden Park to walk about the shopping area and take the temperature. The local businesses are struggling, and Labour’s plans to help retailers will help.

Pauls' Campaign Diary

Campaign Diary 20 June Eastbourne Station, early doors

We turned up to Eastbourne Station to catch the early morning commuters. The station is a vital hub in our town. I am there most days. I regret the decision to rip the NHS Walk-in centre from the heart of the station. I also despair at the complexity of the ticketing system, the expense, and the endless problems on the lines. We campaigned to keep the ticket office open when the Tories put it under threat, and the staff there are unfailingly helpful and knowledgeable.

A Labour Government will return the railway to the publicly-owned and publicly-accountable service.

Pauls' Campaign Diary

Campaign Diary 19 June Filming in the town centre

The Co-op Party has been a constant support for Labour & Co-op candidates like me. You should definitely consider joining. We did a film at the end of Terminus Road, which has lost the cinema, TJ Hughes, Debenhams, and Blacks. This end of town is so shabby and such a disappointment. A new MP should work hard to encourage investment and new ways to use public spaces and buildings. The new Community Right to Buy will mean local people can take control of local assets. In the evening, there was a hustings event at the Eastbourne Blind Centre.