On behalf of all the Conservative candidates, I would like to say a big thank you to everyone in Crawley who voted Conservative in last week’s Crawley Borough Council elections. Crawley Conservatives had a very strong set of results with Labour clinging on to control of Crawley Borough Council by the very narrowest of margins.
Labour held on in Ifield by only 9 votes and in Southgate by only 14 votes. Had these two results gone the other way, Labour’s majority at Crawley Borough Council would have become a Conservative majority. Labour also saw big swings against them in traditionally strong Labour areas such as West Green and most telling of all for Labour, in Northgate against their own Council Leader who came within 98 votes of losing his own seat.
The fact that we are even talking about the Conservatives very nearly winning control of Crawley Borough Council when we are eight years into being in national government is remarkable in itself, and is testament to the strong local support we received in Crawley as well as increasing concerns about Labour’s direction. The ‘political rule book’ says that local elections go against the party of government and in favour of the main opposition party. Indeed, in 2006 after nine years of a Labour Government, the Conservatives won control of Crawley Borough Council which lasted for eight years.
Last week, the Conservatives beat Labour in the overall Crawley vote but only won four out of the twelve seats up for election with Labour winning the other eight. There is a history of Labour being over-represented in Council seats in Crawley compared to their actual vote, as well as a history of Labour in Crawley pursuing unfair Council ward boundaries during boundary reviews in order to maintain an unfair electoral advantage.
Make no mistake, Labour are ruthlessly pursuing a ‘one-party state’ agenda in Crawley and want to wipe out all opposition to Labour and Jeremy Corbyn. It is only Crawley Conservatives who can stop them and we will continue to stand up for the ordinary men and women of Crawley.
Councillor Duncan Crow, Leader of Crawley Borough Council Conservative Group
9th May 2018
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