Your input has been priceless

Good afternoon, everyone. I hope you are all well. It has been nonstop. What an interesting time. Today, I had a public meet and greet here in Northampton, where members of the public, Reform supporters, and voters could drop in, meet myself and a couple of the other local Northamptonshire candidates to ask us any questions, offer their support, pick up some leaflets, marketing material, etc. The rest of the day, led by myself, was spent distributing leaflets to all of the supporters who have offered to help. Thank you very, very much to them.

Now it’s time to sit down and deal with literally the hundreds of responses that I have had to my website election poll. Because I’ve tried, or I’m attempting to do something completely different, and that is rather than just tell the people of Northampton North what I want, I have expressed my opinion, albeit in a very subtle manner. I have actually created an election questionnaire asking local people to give me their thoughts and express their opinions on issues that concern them. This has taken off in a huge way. I have literally had hundreds of responses. These are just yesterday’s and today’s. People haven’t just responded with one- or two-word answers; some of them have gone to town with their responses. Obviously, these are confidential, but they don’t mind me reading out what they’ve written. However, I won’t be giving the names.

*Here’s one: Question one is, “Who do you normally vote for and why?” The response from this gentleman is, “Voted for Conservatives and Labour. Moreover, I did vote for UKIP when Nigel Farage was campaigning. Both major parties have failed, and I only found Reform because I couldn’t believe what the two parties had to offer, and there was nothing appealing at all. I want change. I’ve lived through a one-party state before, and these are the same socialist, borderline communist nonsense.”

Let’s have a look at another one here. “Who do you normally vote for and why?” “I was a Conservative member until they took away my right to vote. I voted Conservative most of my adult life because I believed in their policies.” “What should be done to improve the housing crisis?” “Build more affordable accommodation. Build upwards, i.e., flats rather than houses. Flats use less space and can create a sense of community spirit.”

Another question here: “What are your thoughts on current and proposed energy policy?” “We need to be self-sufficient. We have the energy supplies. Let’s get rid of foreign energy suppliers.” Let’s go to someone else here: “Who do you normally vote for and why?” “I’m not loyal to any party. I vote for who I think will be best at the time.” “What should be done to improve the housing crisis?” “Build more on brownfield and empty plots, and reuse or convert more empty or derelict sites in town and not so much on greenfields on the edge of town. Build or convert more one-, two-, and three-bed places. We don’t need loads of four- and five-bed places.”

I think that’s something I’ve said in the past, and it just goes on and on and on. I am so grateful to you all for this wonderful response. I have to say this is an education, and I’m so glad that I have done this. I am also very, very grateful that you are taking the time to give me so much information, to share your thoughts and your concerns about issues both local and national.

Having said that, with the sense of despair of the people, I am more than ever feeling this huge weight of responsibility on my shoulders to fight as hard as I can. Because all of these people contacting me directly has not only educated me, inspired me, and motivated me, but it has also humbled me and made me more determined than ever to fight. I was born and bred in Northampton. I know the town inside and out. In fact, I am old enough to still be outraged by the horrors executed on this town’s landscape by the Northampton Development Corporation. A classic Labour mindset: destroy beautiful buildings, destroy culture, and replace it with bland, ugly buildings.

For those of you not from Northampton, you may know up until a few years ago when it was quite rightly blown to smithereens, we had the privilege of having a bus station which was one of the ugliest buildings in the country. That’s just one of quite a few which previous councils are responsible for in this town. We had some beautiful buildings. Here is the lesson: once you destroy culture, you cannot get it back. It is gone forever. Interpret that as you will, but that is an empirical fact.

So, on that note, I would like to thank you all. I’m going to get back to work now. If you have completed one of these polls, I will write to you personally, every single last one of you, no matter how long it takes. But please keep in mind that I have had hundreds arrive just in the last week or so, and that’s without the hundreds and hundreds more coming through. All these new members who are signing up and joining Reform, we know, sadly, what the outcome of the election will be. What we need now is a party that is strong enough to fight against the nonsense that these people are going to come up with.

Let’s not forget that the next government is more than likely going to be led by a man who doesn’t know what a woman is and a woman who spontaneously decides to make up her own foreign policy in a room full of men who support terrorists. This is what we have to come, and this is before the lions, who have been conspicuous by their absence, will rear their ugly heads and come for their pound of flesh for the party that they control and pull the strings along with Tony Blair, of course. That’s all for now. Thank you very much, and I’ll see you next time. Bye-bye.