"On the knocker" in Sloane Square

This afternoon I went to campaign in the Tory held marginal in the Cities and Westminster seat. We met outside Pimlico Station and after a short speech by our impressive Labour candidate, Gordon Nardell, I went off with a canvass team with fellow West Hammer, John Morris and my old GLA Assembly/UNISON comrade, Murad Qureshi.

We were sent to canvass for Labour on the Westminster side of Sloane Square, which as you can imagine was very different from the canvass I went to yesterday in a largely working class part of Thurrock in Essex. The average price of homes for sale in Sloane Square is over £1.3 million. The average price for Thurrock was £361,000.

Westminster also has some of the most deprived areas in London.

This part of Cities and Westminster was not, I freely admit, a particularly "Corbyn or Labour Friendly" part of London but we did identify new Labour supporters and, of course, the purpose of canvassing at this stage is also to identify who are non supporters, so that we do not waste any further resources on contacting them.

I really enjoy going to different areas and being challenged as a Labour supporter and, as usual, nearly everyone we spoke to was polite and not aggressive or confrontational. Even if they do not agree with you, the vast majority of people I have spoken to while canvassing over the years are actually pleased that you have come to their door to seek their views (even if they don't want to actually speak to you).

My best conversation of the session was with an elderly retired senior military officer, who said he didn't normally vote since he has spent most of his life outside this country but the one and only time he did vote, he had voted for Labour.

Afterwards some of us warmed up and had a quick pint at a wonderful pub called the "Fox and Hounds" which was hidden away and you would never know it existed from the high street. 

West Ham plays at home then away at Thurrock and also Westminster #GE2019

This morning I went to a joint West Ham & East Ham Labour stall in Green Street to join our Labour Party Candidates, Lyn Brown and Stephen Timms. This was supposed to be a meeting point for our members to then go off and campaign in our marginal seats. I must admit to have been just a little frustrated at the constant calls for photo after photo rather than going out to the marginals but such is life. But if we don't go out and win our marginal seats in this general election, then we might as well just tell Boris to keep the keys to Number 10.

Happily, many members then went off to campaign in the marginal seats. I went with Lyn (and Cara our Labour attack dog, see picture of her and Lyn in Woolf Street) to Thurrock to support local Labour candidate, John Kent, who is seeking to overturn a 345 Tory majority. While other activists went with our Newham Mayor, Rokhsana Fiaz, to support Gordon Nardell in the Cities & Westminster marginal.

I was very impressed with the Thurrock Labour Party campaign headquarters (Tilbury office, 10 Commonwealth House, Montreal Rd, RM18 7QX, there is nearby parking and they will pick you up from the station if you ring beforehand 07434 446148) they were very well organised, had food and drink and were very welcoming!

We went door knocking with a mostly West Ham team. We had a local Cllr, Lynn Worrall, with us. I was running the board (I had the list of addresses that the team had to call on and recorded the results). I gave both Lyns the difficult addresses, where it was known that these residents were opposed to Labour, It was a really good canvass and John Kent is obviously well respected as a real local candidate.

There was a little fuss and bother over #CaraGate, when one resident objected to Lyn Brown bringing Cara onto her property since they had cats. Cara was on a lead and there was no sign of said cats but Cara did unfortunately decide at that moment to have a little "sprinkle" in the garden, which as you can imagine, did not go down that well.

I should have sent Lynn W to that address since she later said that she went to school with that resident's father.

Apart from that it was a remarkably good canvass with lots of residents being supportive of John Kent who recognised that we need to get him elected as their MP.

West Ham on tour: Peterborough, Hull, Cities & Westminster and Chipping Barnet

This morning West Ham Labour members met up outside Stratford Station to go to the launch rally of Labour candidate, Gordon Nardell QC, in the Cities and Westminster seat. This was a packed rally with guest speakers, Shami Chakrabarti and Kier Starmer.

The Labour Party has asked West Ham to support Cities and Westminster in the General election and our Chair of West Ham CLP estimates that we had about 25 of our members attending the rally and the canvass afterwards.

After the canvass I went to the "Big Unions Campaign" launch with West Hammer UNISON member Mumtaz Khan, in Chipping Barnet, of trade union lawyer, Emma Whysall, who only lost out by just over 300 votes in the 2017 General election.

Our UNISON General Secretary, Dave Prentis, was there as well as London Mayor, Sadiq Khan. After this rally I went on a UNISON canvass team with our General secretary, Assistant General Secretary, National Labour officers and National Chair of Young Labour, Miriam Mirwitch. We got absolutely soaked but had a successful canvass in (believe it or not) "Union Street"!

My last call was to a resident who was a traditional Labour supporter who felt very torn about who to support this time. However, she was so impressed that the Party had turned up on her doorstep on such a wet and horrible day that she was willing to give us the benefit of doubt and vote for Emma.

Result!

Our West Ham Labour Candidate, Lyn Brown, had also been out "on the knocker" supporting Labour candidates in Hull and Peterborough.

Launch of Cities & Westminster & Big Unions Campaign in Chipping Barnet (we must win marginals to form Government)

Tomorrow (Saturday 9 November) West Ham Labour members are going to support our key marginal Cities & Westminster campaign launch. Meet at STRATFORD STATION (outside main ticket barrier in concourse) at 9.30 to travel to together to Westminster Napier Hall, Hide Place, London SW1P 4NJ, UK for 10.30am. Followed by canvassing.

Shami Chakrabarti and Kier Starmer will be supporting new candidate Gordon Nardell at the launch,

Later that day there is a "Big Unions Campaign" in Chipping Barnet starting at 1.30pm. Meet at Chipping Barnet Library, 3 Stapylton Road, EN5 4QT. Trade union lawyer Emma Whysall is the candidate who only lost out by just over 300 votes in 2017

UNISON General Secretary, Dave Prentis will be present in Chipping Barnet, as will London Mayor Sadiq Khan

As you can see from images both Cities and Westminster/Chipping Barnet are winnable marginals. We need to win all our marginals to elect Jeremy as our Prime Minister and form a Labour Government. Some marginals will be won or lost by a handful of votes. Do not allow Boris Johnson to win by failing to campaign in our marginal seats.