Labour struggle in Norwich South Constituency

10.09.00am BST (GMT +0100) Wed 7th May 2008

Simon Wright

Simon Wright, Lib Dem Parliamentary Spokesman for Norwich South, comments on Labour's dismal local election results.

"History was made in Norwich's local elections this year. For the first time ever, Labour came fourth in votes cast in a parliamentary constituency that they hold. Labour's support is collapsing in Norwich South - once one of their strongest seats in East Anglia. It is now a tight Labour/LibDem marginal, with the Liberal Democrats just 3,653 votes behind Labour at the last general election. Boundary changes will make the seat even more favourable to the Liberal Democrats next time around.

My experience of speaking to hundreds of voters in Norwich over the last few weeks has demonstrated to me the mounting anger over Labour's performance in Government - not least among Labour's traditional supporters. The abolition of the bottom 10p rate of income tax is already punishing households in Norwich on low incomes. The closure of post offices in Norwich will damage communities in the city. Council taxes continue to rise.

Despite the disappointment of losing council seats in Norwich this year, the Liberal Democrat vote share held up well in Norwich South. We were ahead of both Labour and the Conservatives in terms of votes cast.

More and more people of all political persuasions are saying that its time for a change. The clear choice in Norwich South at the next general election will be between Labour and the Liberal Democrats."