Readers respond to the party’s poor performance in the Hartlepool byelection and council polls
It is hard to know where to start as we take in the Hartlepool byelection defeat and council seat losses. One conclusion is that Labour’s historic electoral coalition of progressive and socially conservative voters, particularly the white working class in post-industrial towns, is all but broken. But trying to appeal to their cultural interests as the Tories have will only alienate progressive voters.
The answer is to be progressive, dynamic and radical, pitching to the multi-ethnic working class and the anti-Tory middle class in cities and university towns, while having bold economic policies that show we are on the side of workers. We need to mine the rich seam of young voters and increase turnout. We need to commit to electoral reform, but building an alliance with the pro-remain Liberal Democrats and Greens could be punished. Brexit still has electoral consequences, and Labour needs to show that it has moved beyond this.
Steve Flatley
York
