Statement on behalf of Cllr Chris Lucas, LibDem Candidate for the new Hitchin Constituency, after the announcement by Hitchin Labour Party that Alistair Strathern, MP for Mid Beds, will also stand in Hitchin.

From the Chair of North Herts & Stevenage LibDems, Dominic Griffiths & Nigel Carnell, Chair of Central Beds LibDems

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Since parachuting their candidate into Mid Beds for the By-Election last summer, the Labour Party have evidently decided a mere 95 days after he won it that Mr Strathern will fail to hold the seat in the General Election, and are hoping that it will be 'second time lucky' in his search for a long term post.

Similar moves by a number of MPs facing boundary changes have been described as a 'chicken run' to what they hope will be safer seats. However, we have a few 'nuggets' of information about this strategy. 

Hitchin is the third place in 12 months that Alistair Strathern has sought to represent.

A year ago, he was representing people in Walthamstow in London before he decamped to Bedfordshire last summer, proclaiming that to be his real home.

Now he is abandoning 80% of his constituents in Mid Beds to try his luck in Hitchin. What commitment does he really have to Hitchin and the surrounding area?

He claims that he will continue to deal with the concerns of the whole of Mid Beds whilst simultaneously starting a campaign to win over Hitchin.

In fact, Labour gained hardly any new votes in last October's By- Election, winning a slim majority due to half the previously Conservative supporting voters staying at home. The LibDems were the only major party to gain a substantial number of votes from the 2019 result, and we have a strong base to build a majority in the new constituency.

Since 2017 Hitchin has had a Conservative MP who is more interested in furthering his political career than representing local people. Hitchin doesn't need him to be replaced with a Labour politician who does exactly the same. We need an MP who will really represent Hitchin and the surrounding area.

The result in 2019, when Labour claimed that only they could beat the Conservatives before coming a poor third, shows that Lib Dem Chris Lucas is the person to do that. Chris Lucas lives and works in Hitchin and has been here for years. His children go to local schools and he already represents people in part of the town. He is the sort of person we need to represent us in place of the Conservatives, not a Labour foot soldier.

Chris Lucas said "Hitchin has been let down for years by our Conservative MP and his failing Government.

"As a local Councillor I have shown my commitment to local residents day in and day out. They know that I am in this to help the people of Hitchin and that is my sole priority." 

It is the LibDems who have a credible track record of representing the people of Hitchin, campaigning on matters that directly affect them.

It is the LibDems that can be trusted to protect the environment, the Green Belt, our chalk streams and rivers, and have credible solutions to tackle the cost-of-living and NHS crises.

The successful LibDem run constituency in neighbouring St Albans shows how they can overturn the so-called "Blue Wall" and win seats in this area.

Mr Strathern may find that in his haste to "fly the coup", by abandoning his constituents in Mid-Beds, his "chickens may come home to roost" at the general election in Hitchin.

Statement on behalf of Cllr Chris Lucas, LibDem Candidate for the new Hitchin Constituency, after the announcement by Hitchin Labour Party that Alistair Strathern, MP for Mid Beds, will also stand in Hitchin.

From the Chair of North Herts & Stevenage LibDems, Dominic Griffiths & Nigel Carnell, Chair of Central Beds LibDems