We should be winning back seats lost in 2019. But I have found big dissatisfaction with the national direction of Government on the doorstep.
At times it does get a bit nasty. But the truth is if you’re not prepared for this, then being a councillor is really not the role for you.
To that end, it is imperative that the campaign is well backed. We must have a core set of messages on issues that apply across the whole of London.
From Sandwell to Solihull, Bromsgrove to Wolverhampton, Dudley to Tamworth, we have been out to help the amazing local teams who have been working so tirelessly to hold and gain Council seats.
Even the software we are given to create leaflets is years out of date, not even allowing collaborative working across toolkit accounts. Would it really hurt CCHQ to make our lives a little easier by giving us up to date systems?
Despite our unpopularity in the opinion polls, our residents understand the value of supporting good hard-working Conservatives in order to protect a low taxing, weekly bin emptying Council.
Too often the process ends up keeping the incumbents happy, but we risk losing elections due to a lack of rigour.
We are very fortunate in my ward to be up against far left Corbynista types, so full of hatred for any Conservative, it’s hard to describe. Ed Balls once said that politicians should have goldilocks skin – not too thick and not too thin.
It is a challenging time but we must support each other and we must communicate the value we bring to the communities we serve.
Despite the mess the incumbent has made of it, having the chance to govern the greatest city in the World is an immense privilege and hugely worthwhile.
This toxic “we know best” mentality has had particularly devastating consequences for the most vulnerable residents.
I am thrilled with the progress we’re making as a Council – and our laser focus on providing the best public services possible.
Residents are fed up with their money being wasted on vanity projects. We will go into next year’s election with the aim of winning control.
Nothing shows our commitment to our values than the show of diversity and talent on display among our exceptional leadership candidates.
Ashdown built a formidable campaign machine that slowly and consistently delivered significant gains for the Liberal Democrats – and we have their blueprint for how they did it.