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When Andy Street was elected the first-ever mayor of the West Midlands in 2017, his victory was an unexpected victory for the Conservative Party. He was one of two Conservative metro mayors to be elected, alongside Tees Valley’s Ben Houchen, despite predictions that a Labor representative would be elected.
Their victory was seen as important in demonstrating a shift in political allegiance from urban voters in central and northern England.
Mr Street is currently fighting for a third term in office, and the outcome of the West Midlands election will be one of the most closely watched local and mayoral elections next month. Again, expectations are against him. The party is languishing in national opinion polls and is expected to suffer a crushing defeat in the next general election.
Many believe he is distancing himself from the national Conservative government to avoid becoming collateral damage in the election.
talk to I At his coffee shop in Sutton Coldfield, an affluent town north-east of Birmingham city centre, Mr Street says his theme has always been “what I call ‘Brand Andy'”.
“This is an election for one person who is going to do a very big job with a huge budget, so it’s very important that we elect the individual, not the party that does it,” he said. Ta. “So I’ll explain what I’ve done. I have my record, look at it and judge. That’s what I’m going to do.”
“People said I had no chance of winning here as a Conservative in 2017, but I got elected because it was just voting for the person and the plan. I have used the same brand of Andy’s approach three times.”
Is the party’s position at the national level hurting this “brand”?
“Frankly, that’s what we’re going to see,” he said. “I don’t think that’s going to happen. I think people understand that this is another election where they vote for individuals.”
The West Midlands Conservative Party Association chairman said: I They were pessimistic about the outcome.
“I think it would be really close. I wish it hadn’t been for that fact. [Andy Street] There’s a blue flag flying next to his name, which he probably would have flown, but people associate him with the Conservative Party and he could lose the flag as a result, but Still, he left an incredible legacy on the region,” they said. “Absolutely not. [down to] his character and policies. ”
Labor officials on the ground admit Mr Street’s personal popularity could be a problem for them.
“We truly believe it’s a completely close race at this point,” one source said. “I’ve spoken to people on my doorstep who said they voted Labor in the general election and will vote Labor forever. ‘I’ll never vote Conservative again…but I’ll vote for Andy Street, he ‘You’re not doing anything.’
He added: “Some people are saying I’m voting for reform because we need to send a message to the Conservative Party.” Officials suggested the reforms could chip away at some support for the Conservatives in parts of the black country, such as Wolverhampton and Dudley.
But Labor candidate Richard Parker has his own challenges in the region. This month, Birmingham residents will be hit with a new council tax bill set to rise by around 20 per cent over two years to claw back money following Labour-led Birmingham City Council’s bankruptcy. The latest bill includes a 10% raise, no small amount for families already struggling with budgets.
talk to I In between pleas, Parker said: “There are a number of issues facing the council, with reports and reviews underway that will require a better understanding of what is going wrong and why. But the reality is that the government is spending £1 billion on it, which is out of Birmingham’s budget and has had a terrible impact on some of our poorest communities at a time when it was needed most. ”
So if elected, will he shift the blame to the central government if things go wrong? “I am ready to take full responsibility for the matters I am responsible for,” he said. “But I am going to take a very different approach to the current mayor. I am not going to attack or disparage the councils in this area that are having financial problems.”
No matter what Labor says, the issue of council tax increases could prove to be a difficult issue for the party.
“The issue of Birmingham City Council and insolvency is a huge issue and its impact should not be underestimated,” the Conservative Party chairman said. “The new banknotes just started hitting people’s mats this month, so they probably haven’t been introduced yet, but when people vote they tend to look at their wallets first. That’s enough to help Andy Street. Whether it’s time is debatable.”
Labor could also see some of its votes eclipsed by independent candidate Ahmed Yacoub, who has campaigned fiercely against Labor’s stance on Israel’s bombing of Gaza. One voter who visited with Labor’s election team in Handsworth, just outside Birmingham city center, said he would not vote for Labor because of this very issue.
Regarding this, Walker said: “We have listened to our constituents…and we understand their concerns. I have issued a statement calling for a ceasefire on Gaza and will work with the international community to ensure the release of the hostages. “We need to create an environment for a two-state solution.”
Waseem Zafar, a Labor MP from a nearby ward, argued that while Gaza would be an issue for the party, it was not a priority for voters.
“Some people who voted Labor feel the position is not what they wanted, but what upsets them even more are issues such as the cost of living and housing.” he said.
“My biggest area of casework is housing, with families of five and families of six living in two-bedroom properties.”
Housing is a recurring issue across the West Midlands, as it is in other parts of the country. The first question asked by voters at the Sutton Coldfield meeting (which Mr Walker’s team said he did not attend due to daily clashes) was about the “housing crisis”.
Mr Street is campaigning on a promise to build more social housing. “Like the rest of the country, we are not building enough social housing. I have committed to a very clear manifesto to triple the rate of social housing construction across the region.” he said.
“And the reason we’re able to do that is because in the last devolution deal we got what’s called an affordable housing program. So we’ve got that cash now, and the individual We are starting all sorts of conversations with social landlords about how we can help them.”
Parker said his priority is “to mobilize as much of the housing resources that the mayor has and target them into a large-scale public housing program, something the mayor hasn’t done before.” .
He added: “This is really important because there are a lot of people who don’t have access to warm, safe and secure housing because the private market is too expensive and they can’t get a mortgage. Because they will live in some of our poorest communities. He also pledged to tackle skills and training, which he said was “one of the biggest issues” in the West Midlands, with a focus on educating 16 to 19-year-olds.
With leading Conservative and Labor politicians campaigning across the West Midlands, it’s clear both parties are fighting for every vote.
For Sir Keir Starmer’s Labor Party, a victory in the mayoral election would continue the momentum it had gained in the run-up to the national polls. But failing to do so would expose “chinks in Labour’s armor”, one party source said.
The stakes are perhaps even higher for Rishi Sunak. “In essence, Andy Street is a beacon of hope for conservatives,” said a Labor source. “They’re desperate to show he has a foothold with voters.”
They added, “If your brand is so toxic that you can’t keep ‘Mr. Apolitical’ Andy Street in office, how are you going to send in members of Congress?”