Labour Party branches sent a clear message in support of Hove MP Peter Kyle today (Saturday 15 January).
All five branches in the Hove constituency, which includes Portslade, voted in favour of Mr Kyle’s reselection as the party’s candidate at the next general election.
But party affiliates – including trade unions – account for half the vote and they have until Monday (17 January) to give their verdict.
The overwhelming result so far though makes it look highly likely that Mr Kyle, who serves as the Shadow Northern Ireland Secretary in the House of Commons, will be reselected.
He sent a statement to members attending the five branch meetings today. Party rules prevented him from attending any of the meetings, including for the branch where he lives.
In the statement, Mr Kyle said: “Together we won this seat from the Tories in 2015 and have been on an amazing journey ever since.
“The next steps in that journey together are to share that ‘Hove and Portslade spirit’ far and wide to deliver the general election victory that’s within our grasp.
“I’m standing for reselection so I can build on our accomplishments and play my part in getting our party campaign-ready, equipped and inspired to defeating more Tories locally, across the south east and country.
“Voting to reselect me will show the local Tories that we are united against this corrupt and failing government and it will show local residents that we are on their side and working hard every day to give them a voice in these unsettling times.
“I’ve got so much more to achieve for Labour – locally and nationally – and can’t wait to get stuck in by deepening support for our communities and help us win the council back in 2023.
“And, crucially, to get Keir Starmer into Number 10 so the struggle can begin to rebuild our economy with fairness at its heart, rehabilitate our reputation around the world and once again become a country that defends human rights and the institutions that protects them.
“I hope you’ve taken pride in my commitment to solving many deep-set problems in society by putting Labour values into action and standing up against Boris Johnson and the morally bankrupt behaviour of his government and ministers.
“Whether it was
- Fighting Brexit and giving Remain a strong, confident voice
- Being a humane advocate to refugees seeking help in Hove
- Working hand-in-hand with local community groups to improve our community such as winning £10 million for sports on the seafront
- Introducing new legislation to help victims of crime
- Being the first MP to shine a light on government’s failure to protect care homes at the start of covid-19
- Working with local schools to drive up standards
- When the rail network was on its knees bringing in £320 million to end the nightmare and chairing the group of MPs that turned things around
- Supporting local enterprise and entrepreneurs in Portslade and Hangleton to grow their business
- Getting the law changed so family courts better treat survivors of domestic abuse
…
“What happens next? There are five ‘branches’ in Hove and Portslade and members of each branch will vote to either select me as their candidate or ‘trigger’ me to fight a long expensive selection battle which would distract us all from the needs of our community.
“I hope you’ll select me so we can all move forward quickly as a united and effective Labour Party in Hove and Portslade and play our part in Labour victories across the city and region and do our bit to deliver the next Labour government.”
Won’t win a general election when your leader uses every PM QUESTIONS for gutter political point scoring. Especially when the accuser Starmer has actually broke lockdown rules in a much bigger way.When i knew Corbyn would not get in i did vote for Peter. But no way will i if Starmer is leader. He has taken politics into the gutter with none of our issues addressed.
It’s Boris who uses PMQs for petty point scoring.
It’s the only thing he can do because he has no answers.
Remember 100+ Tory MPs who voted against Boris a few weeks ago yet somehow it’s Labour who are point scoring!
Laughable
Peter Kyle originally promised action to address a market where renters were treated unfairly. Affordable housing is still scarce in the city and shamefully he had not been present at the protests directed at new developments which are priced at a premium to the current highly valued housing stock. The local achievements he claims are relatively unimpressive.
We basically have a choice – vote for a party run by rich donors and oligarchs or a party run by half a dozen union leaders
Even thought Peter didn’t get much changed he always tried and supported important issues like helping immigrants, gay rights and cycle lanes.
Peter is a good MP. Let’s hope he is endorsed.