covering letter to labour's lost labour voter

To: Harriet Harman MP Cc: Margaret Beckett MP Andy Burnham MP Yvette Cooper MP Jeremy Corbyn MP Liz Kendall MP Ben Bradshaw MP Stella Creasy MP Angela Eagle MP Caroline Flint MP Tom Watson MP 16 th July 2015 Listening to Labour’s Lost Labour Voters Enclosed is a report from our research project investigating why Labour failed to keep previous Labour voters at the 2015 general election. We are also copying this report to Margaret as Chair of the Learning the Lessons from Defeat Taskforce and to the Leadership and Deputy Leadership candidates. The report is based on ten discuss ions held in five locations in some of Labour’s targ et seats in England (Halesowen and Rowley Regis, Croydon Central, Southampton Itchen, Watford and Pudsey). The people we spoke with were all lifelong Labour voters, including in 2010, who couldn’t bring themselves to vote Labour in May. Almost all of them voted Tory. We believe that our findings are important to help Labour learn for the future, and will help whoever becomes our next Leader and Deputy Leader define Labour’s longer-term vision and purpose. Our report doesn’t make pleasant reading for Labour politicians. The voters we sp oke with told us that Labour do esn’t have a God-given right to exist, and that there are plenty of parties out there now for them to choose from. They told us that Labour

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Letter addressed to Harriet Harman, Margaret Beckett, and the Labour leadership and deputy leadership candidates.

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To: Harriet Harman MP Cc: Margaret Beckett MP Andy Burnham MP Yvette Cooper MP Jeremy Corbyn MP Liz Kendall MP Ben Bradshaw MP Stella Creasy MP Angela Eagle MP Caroline Flint MP Tom Watson MP 16th July 2015 Listening to Labours Lost Labour Voters Enclosed is a report from our research project investigating why Labour failed to keep previous Labour voters at the 2015 general election. We are also copying this report to Margaret as Chair of the Learning the Lessons from Defeat Taskforce and to the Leadership and Deputy Leadership candidates. The report is based on ten discussions held in five locations in some of Labours target seats in England (Halesowen and Rowley Regis, Croydon Central, Southampton Itchen, Watford and Pudsey). The people we spoke with were all lifelong Labour voters, including in 2010, who couldnt bring themselves to vote Labour in May. Almost all of them voted Tory. We believe that our findings are important to help Labour learn for the future, and will help whoever becomes our next Leader and Deputy Leader define Labours longer-term vision and purpose. Our report doesnt make pleasant reading for Labour politicians. The voters we spoke with told us that Labour doesnt have a God-given right to exist, and that there are plenty of parties out there now for them to choose from. They told us that Labour
simply didnt speak to them ahead of the general election. They said that unless Labour makes itself relevant to their lives, they are prepared to stick with the Tories next time around. As a result of our research project we believe that there are five big questions that Leadership and Deputy Leadership candidates have to answer:

1. What is Labours purpose now?

2. Why should we listen to you when we didnt listen to Ed Miliband?

3. How will you re-build Labours economic credibility; and what is your plan to help create jobs and wealth without taking the country further into debt?

4. How will you reform the welfare state?

5. How will you help the country and our communities flourish within an increasingly globalised world that has growing migration of people?

Unless and until Labour answers these questions adequately for these voters, we fear the Party is doomed to opposition for a long time. Or even be on the road to extinction. With our best wishes Alan Barnard John Braggins