Would You like a feature Interview?
All Interviews are 100% FREE of Charge
“If he loses, it’s going to be very important,” Dan Norris admits. “It’s definitely going to be a key moment in the general election.”
That “thing” is the prospect of defeating Sir Jacob Rees-Mogg in the upcoming general election. Mr Norris, currently the mayor of a metro in the west of England, was sworn in this month as Labor’s candidate for the new seat which Mr Rees-Mogg will hold.
There are many worthwhile general election prediction websites. Gives Norris a very big chance of winning In the north-eastern counties of Somerset and Hanham, Electoral Accounts predict he will enter Parliament with the support of 45% of the 72,940 voters.
Labor’s victory in a by-election in neighboring Kingswood in February also bodes well for Labor.
Norris takes nothing for granted. “If I win, despite what the polls say, it means I will help Labor win the general election,” he says. I.
“The main objective is for Labor to form the next government. But would they be happy? Of course they would be.”
But the broader significance of his own personal battle is not lost on him. Mr Rees-Mogg is considered the most conservative of the Conservative Party. The high profile of his Brexit supporters Boris Johnson and Liz Truss has made him a totemic object of hatred for many on the left.
So if you’re looking for a seat that could even surpass the 1997 “Portillo moment” for Labor, this could be it.
The pair have a history and Norris’ win will be revenge, adding some spice. Norris’ 13 years as an MP came to an abrupt end in 2010 when Rees-Mogg won the then newly created North East Somerset seat by nearly 10 percentage points.
Now, a decade and a half later, the rematch is taking place in a new seat, and Norris is looking to return the favor. Their hotly contested constituency is very similar to the old Wandsdyke seat, which Mr Norris held in the same area from 1997 until it was abolished in 2010.
“But first we have to win,” he warns. “The people of this district are smart.
“They know him. He’s been an MP for the last 14 years and 13 years before that, so they know me. They know it’s a very interesting contest. is being held.
To say Norris is not a fan of Rees-Mogg would be an understatement. He suggests that the Conservatives have carefully crafted an act that describes him as the Lord Snooty of British politics and “an honorable member of the 18th century”.
“I think he’s analyzed himself pretty hard and worked out what works for him and what makes him feel good,” says the directly elected Labor mayor.
“I think that worked really well for him in a world where authenticity is often perceived as being different and quirky.”
Norris is cautious about the party’s chances as a whole. “The first time I ran for Congress was in 1992, and everyone said we would win, but we didn’t,” he says.
“So did I, and that experience still leaves a scar. So the goal is to win, and it’s not easy, but it’s doable.”
Many still believe that Labor’s victory in the upcoming general election was due to voters’ disdain for the Conservative Party, rather than genuine enthusiasm for the party and its leader, Sir Keir Starmer. Norris doesn’t think the theory is far-fetched.
“People are certainly fed up with the Conservative Party,” he says. “Growing up, I never knew anything like this.
“But I believe that people don’t love Labor as much as Labor needs. So there’s a courtship that needs to continue. Labor needs to build trust and it’s a continuous process. .
“If a Labor government comes into power, we need to rebuild trust in politics, so that process needs to continue.”
If both Labor and Mr Norris achieve what is possible, Mr Norris, who served as undersecretary for local affairs and the environment under Gordon Brown and served as whip in Tony Blair’s government, will draw on his experience in Labour’s governments. Considering this, there is a possibility of rapid promotion to a government post. Limited to a small number of frontbenchers.
“I’m not thinking about that. I’m thinking about winning this seat for Labor,” was his predictable answer, but there was a glint in his eye.
One of Norris’ areas of experience and interest is transportation. He loves buses so much that as mayor he started giving people free bus trips during his birthday month.
He received a lot of criticism when he spent £10,000 plastering a photo of himself on his double-decker car with his blonde collie dog Angel. The interim chief executive of the West of England Integration Authority has expressed concern that the free bus scheme is as much about self-promotion as the free bus scheme.
The plan itself has come under fire, particularly from Rees-Mogg, who described the “brainwaves” as “akin to a contraption aimed solely at the Mayor’s interests”.
Others accuse it of wasting money that could be spent on ensuring the survival of unprofitable but vital lines, benefits that benefit the wealthiest 10 percent and age groups. , that the decision should have been based on employment and socio-economic status.
Naturally, Norris does not agree with this. “The numbers show it’s working and convincing people who benefited from it to get out of their cars,” he says. “Some people take advantage of free travel during their birthday month to take up to eight buses in a day.
“Of course we can’t always ask people to stop using their cars because they need them in rural areas like this, but there is evidence that bus use increases once the free period ends, and that Some people might take the bus.” I had never thought of taking the bus before. ”
Another big passion is animal rights. He is director and chairman of the Cruel Sports Federation and wants the Labor government to crack down on what he claims is “ongoing illegal fox hunting”.
Wouldn’t it be detrimental to him to be so vocal about his opposition to hunting in rural areas?
“You’d be surprised,” he says. “There is strong opposition to it both here and in many other places around the country.”
At a time when food banks are struggling to keep up with demand amid a cost-of-living crisis and war continues to claim innocent lives every day, many say starting a new battle over hunting is not a priority. might argue. But Norris has a different perspective.
“This is the measure of a civilized society,” he says. “If we can establish certain standards for the correct way to treat animals, then that becomes the basis for how we treat humans.
“The takeaway from that is that we treat ourselves better. We get to see a doctor sooner, and we can better treat people who need our help. Become.”
The fame gained from being on the side of the bus was clearly on Angel’s mind.When Norris is chatting I At the cozy Compton Inn in the heart of the North East Somerset and Hanham constituency of Compton-Dand, his dogs charm locals and enjoy their reputation.
Norris is also recognized as the mayor, and it doesn’t take long before a discussion about whether cracking down on illegal hunting will lead to the improvement of society as a whole is interrupted by Gary.
Gary is 53 years old and has lived on the same street his entire life. He said the street was riddled with potholes that were never fixed in his lifetime, but have now gotten so bad that the mayor believes action needs to be taken. It may have been a lucky day for Norris, as he knows Gary’s plea has been noticed by the paper.
Norris freely admits that he is on the left of the Labor Party, “not the far left, but the left”.
Indeed, it must have been quite painful to see Tory defector Natalie Elphicke received such a warm welcome by Starmer.
“I feel a little uncomfortable about her being in the Labor Party,” Norris admits. “But if you are Keir Starmer and you took Labor from a disaster like the 2019 election result to the brink of forming a government, you can get behind it and I have faith in you. I have to say, please be completely judgemental.”
Mr Norris has now vowed that the situation with Diane Abbott, who has been out of the Labor Party whip for two years, will be “resolved quickly” after she wrote a letter to a national newspaper with content the party considers anti-Semitic. I want it.
Returning to the campaign to unseat Rees-Mogg, he admits there is one thing that could tempt him: a trip to Mars. Norris is a bit of a space geek. He is in awe of the universe.
“When we look at the stars, we see that the smallest part of the visible universe is part of something going on with infinite diversity,” he says.
“I’m going to take a one-way trip to Mars, but will that piss me off? What an experience that would be.”
Norris is expected to be there on election night, taking the stage alongside Rees-Mogg and other candidates, given the unlikely chance of him being selected to take part in the first Mars mission. . If you had already known at that point that you would be returning as a member of Congress, how would it feel to do so?
“Of course I feel great,” he says. “But you will feel even better knowing that Labor will also form the next government.”