The manifesto is here:
Click to access GEManifesto2019FINAL5.pdf
NOTE: this IS a packed hall – no doctored photo such as Boris Johnson uses!
Category Archives: Claire Wright
“Jo Swinson denies losing control over Lib Dem party*” * (she doesn’t have any control)
She can’t lose control – she’s never had it. Easy]t Devon has its credible Remain candidate – Claire Wright with 35% of the vote in 2017 – but Swinson has absolutely no control over the local East Devon Lib Dem candidate who has more reason to stand down than any other Lib Dem.
If she isn’t in control local groups – what is she in control? of? What is she Leader of?
Vote Lib Dem, Green or Labour and get (parachuted in, no local roots) Tory – again.
Sidmouth hustings – 6 December 2019 – details
General Election Hustings in Sidmouth: 6th December
All the candidates for the East Devon constituency for the upcoming general election have been invited to a hustings event in Sidmouth.
On Friday 6th December
at 7pm
At All Saints’ Church Hall,
All Saints’ Road,
Sidmouth, EX10 8ES
They will be on stage and will answer pre-submitted questions.
The event is open to all members of the public and will be hosted and chaired by the Vision Group for Sidmouth.
Please send in any questions to
See: https://visionforsidmouth.org/event/general-election-hustings-in-sidmouth/
East Devon leader Ingham “nearly stood for Parliament “
NOT in East Devon, but in Tiverton and Honiton. He has strong views on East Devon candidates:
“Independent councillor Ben Ingham told this title he seriously considered running for Parliament as a protest candidate – so dismayed is he at the performance of the area’s MPs.
He is a supporter of Ms Wright and said he would not have stood against her in East Devon, but he said he might have challenged MP Neil Parish in Tiverton and Honiton.
“That would be the obvious one or maybe Mid Devon…or even West Devon and Torridge where Geoffrey Cox is,” he said. “I think he needs to be questioned now and again, I think he’s a bit too full of himself for my liking.”
He said the aim of a campaign would have been ‘to give people the opportunity to show their disquiet at the political parties’.
All the main parties, he said, have ‘let down’ the people by failing to achieve a good Brexit deal in three years.
Ultimately, he said he decided to focus on his role as leader of East Devon District Council.
In the East Devon constituency, Conservative Sir Hugo Swire is not running again and Claire Wright, currently a county councillor, has come second in each of the last two elections.
Her opponents, announced so far, are Simon Jupp (Conservative), Henry Gent (Green), Daniel Wilson (Labour) and Eleanor Rylance (Lib Dem).
Cllr Ingham said he believes Cllr Wright is the favourite in the race.
He said: “As an Independent, I think it’s wonderful that we’ve got this chance to put an Independent in the House of Commons.”
The Woodbury and Lympstone councillor said he heard ‘last year’ MP Sir Hugo Swire planned to stand down, describing it as ‘disrespectful’ of the Conservatives to pick a candidate at such a late stage.
Of the selection of Simon Jupp, he said: “If they wanted someone charismatic, which is what I think they tried to do, they would have been better off with Iggy Pop in my opinion. People would be able to relate to him more than a DJ from Plymouth.“
https://www.exmouthjournal.co.uk/news/general-election-ben-ingham-considered-standing-1-6370864
Claire Wright on election candidates: “not asking for an easy ride”
“Last week, the non-party campaign group Unite to Remain identified 60 seats where a deal had been struck between the Liberal Democrats, Plaid Cymru and the Green Party, in a move to defeat Conservative candidates.
However East Devon rivals have refused to do the same.
The organisation behind Unite to Remain has however backed Ms Wright as its preferred general election candidate in East Devon, despite rival parties failing to agree a truce in the seat.
Unite to Remain director Peter Dunphy said the organisation had not included East Devon in the list of candidates but urged remain voters to back Ms Wright as the best chance to wrest the seat from Tory control.
He added: “It was not possible to gain cross-party agreement for a single candidate in every key constituency that we considered.
“Ultimately it has been up to the political parties in consultation with local members to make these tough choices.
“Sadly, we were unable to gain Unite to Remain all-party agreement in East Devon.
“Our suggestion therefore is to follow the excellent tactical voting advice of Best for Britain and Gina Miller’s Remainunited to support the remain candidate with the best chance of victory.”
Ms Wright, who won 35 per cent of the votes compared to the Lib Dems’ two per cent, said she had never approached any of her rivals or asked them to give her a free run.
However, she welcomed the Unite to Remain endorsement.
She added: “Of course, running as a sole candidate against the Conservatives would appear to give me a better chance but I am not asking anyone for an easy ride.
“I have fought a fair and positive campaign twice, without assistance, increasing my share of the vote without resorting to personal attacks and I don’t intend to start now.
“I would now urge my supporters to concentrate all of their energy on getting this people-powered campaign over the line.
“And, of course, we must avoid the danger presented by Boris Johnson’s withdrawal agreement – which could condemn us to years of trade negotiations and threaten the NHS – by offering the public a democratic vote which includes the option of remain.”
East Devon: Vote Lib Dem, get Tory – the LiDems don’t seem to care
Local Lib Dems have attempted to explain why they are standing against Claire Wright. Owl is not publishing the link as Owl considers the article to be very “economical with the truth” to say the least and will not give them the further oxygen of publicity for their excuses.
They are attempting to say that Claire Wright has not been explicit enough about being anti-Brexit. They also say she hadn’t asked them to stand down!
Claire Wright has always been totally consistent in her support for remain – much more explicit than Lib Dems whose policies on Remain have wobbled precariously.
Indeed pro-Remain groups supported her for her Remain stance at the last election in 2017:
https://www.sidmouthherald.co.uk/news/east-devon-independent-endorsed-for-brexit-views-1-5043331
and Googling her provides HUNDREDS of links to her support for Remain.
True she is too highly principled to interfere in their internal debates. However, even the Lib Dems national Leader can’t influence them.
Owl suspects vastly over-estimated ego has trumped common sense and doing what is best for East Devon.
East Devon Green Party candidate who is selling farm land to BIG developers says climate change is his priority!
VOTE LIB DEM, LABOUR OR GREEN – and get TORY!
Honestly, you couldn’t make it up.
The East Devon Green Party has chosen “farmer” Henry Gent to stand against Claire Wright!
Gent has featured in this blog before:
He’s a councillor (with Rylance – the Lib Dem candidate) on the now notorious Broadclyst Parish Council:
https://eastdevonwatch.org/2019/10/12/broadclyst-twinned-with-mayfair/
Here is his declaration of interest, showing he has a large area of land optioned to Persimmon:
Click to access roi-henry-gent.pdf
Here is a 2014 planning application for his land – now the Tithebarn Lane housing development:
“14/2761/MOUT Demolition of the existing buildings and development of the site to provide up to 900 dwellings and a primary school with car and cycle parking, public and private open space together with landscaping and associated servicing (all matters reserved). Mosshayne Land North Of Tithebarn Lane Clyst Honiton 17/1019/MOUT Demolition of existing buildings and development […]”
Green? A very, very funny shade of blue-green perhaps!
and further info on the same area:
Click to access 14%201090%2002%20Tithebarn%20Green%20land%20at%20Monkerton.pdf
Shocking.
“Unite to Remain supports independent Parliamentary candidate Claire Wright for East Devon despite parties not standing down”
PRESS RELEASE
“Unite to Remain supports independent Parliamentary candidate Claire Wright for East Devon despite parties not standing down
The organisation behind a Remain alliance has backed independent candidate Claire Wright as its preferred general election candidate in East Devon despite rival parties failing to agree a truce in the seat.
Unite to Remain last week identified 60 seats where a deal had been struck between the Liberal Democrats, Plaid Cymru and the Green Party, in a move to defeat Conservative candidates.
The non-party campaign group has revealed that it also proposed Claire Wright – and whose 21,000 votes in 2017 make her the clear challenger to the Tories – but were unable to persuade the Lib Dems or Greens to stand aside.
Unite to Remain director Peter Dunphy said the organisation had not included East Devon in the list of candidates but urged Remain voters to back Claire Wright as the best chance to wrest the seat from Tory control.
“It was not possible to gain cross-party agreement for a single candidate in every key constituency that we considered,” added Dunphy.
“Ultimately it has been up to the political parties in consultation with local members to make these tough choices.
“Sadly, we were unable to gain Unite to Remain all-party agreement in East Devon where we had proposed Claire Wright as the clear challenger to the Conservatives.
“Our suggestion therefore is to follow the excellent tactical voting advice of Best for Britain and Gina Miller’s Remainunited to support the Remain candidate with the best chance of victory, which in the case of East Devon is the Independent Claire Wright.”
Wright, who won 35 per cent of the vote compared to the Lib Dems’ 2 per cent, said she had never approached any of her rivals or asked them to give her a free run.
However, she welcomed the Unite to Remain endorsement and insisted voters could make their own decisions about whether to vote tactically based on past results.
“I have never asked for any favours from my rivals and I respect their decision to stand and fight for the seat,” she added.
“Of course, running as a sole candidate against the Conservatives would appear to give me a better chance but I am not asking anyone for an easy ride.
“I have fought a fair and positive campaign twice, without assistance, increasing my share of the vote without resorting to personal attacks and I don’t intend to start now.
“I would now urge my supporters to concentrate all of their energy on getting this people-powered campaign over the line.
“And, of course, we must avoid the danger presented by Boris Johnson’s withdrawal agreement – which could condemn us to years of trade negotiations and threaten the NHS – by offering the public a democratic vote which includes the option of Remain.”
Plymouth-born ex-DJ Tory assistant to Swire pal Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab selected to fight East Devon seat
Well, that’s a bit of a surprise! Not a single local Tory seen fit to fight the seat! Or maybe courageous enough to fight it.
Instead another male career politico from outside the area who has apparently been trying to find a seat for several years.
Hhhmmmm…
“Conservatives in East Devon have finally selected the man (and it is another man: no female has ever represented East Devon, or before that, the Honiton seat, as it was called) whom they want to take over from Sir Hugo Swire at next month’s general election.
It’s been two months since Sir Hugo announced his intention to step down, but the Tories seemed in no hurry to select their candidate.
Now they’ve done so and it’s a Devon boy. Thirty-four year old Simon Jupp is currently a special advisor to Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab, a job he took this summer which then prevented him hosting programmes on Radio Exe, where he’d been an occasional freelance presenter. Mr Jupp has also been a reporter for ITV and a full-time presenter on the commercial radio station in his home city, Radio Plymouth.
But politics has been one of his long-standing interests and he has been trying to find a seat for some years. Now he’s landed what would normally be considered as one of the safest for the Conservatives, and indeed has rarely been anything other than true blue. You have to go back to 1886 to find a Liberal sitting pretty there and that’s only because the Conservatives didn’t bother putting anyone forward. There wasn’t even a vote. Other than a period in the 1930s when the Unionists represented the seat (which is much the same thing as today’s Conservative and Unionist party), it’s been Tory ever since.
But that could change with the current political situation. East Devon was a marginal Leave constituency in the 2016 referendum. Like Sir Hugo Swire, Mr Jupp is a remainer. He’s since said he thinks that democracy is best served if the UK leaves the EU as the electorate chose at the time. In the last three general elections, Labour haven’t pulled in much more than 10 per cent of the vote, whilst in the last election, the Lib Dem lost her deposit and the Greens didn’t stand.
However it’s the challenge from independent Claire Wright that could be Mr Jupp’s biggest thorn. Ms Wright, who represents the Otter Valley on Devon County Council, will be fighting her third general election. As with her new Tory rival, she has remainer instincts and in 2017 one in three East Devon votes put their cross against her name. She has the advantage of having built her profile in the constituency. Although Devon born and bred, Mr Jupp has been a political professional for some years and has spent much of this year stalking the corridors of Westminster and Whitehall. With an anti-establishment edge to the election, that may not count in his favour.
Unlike his two Conservative predecessors, Sir Hugo Swire and Sir Peter Emery, Mr Jupp has not been drafted into Devon from elsewhere. Educated in the state system, including at Shaugh Priory Primary School in Plymouth, he became a radio presenter rather thing to university. His family live in Devon.”
https://www.radioexe.co.uk/news-and-features/local-news/former-radio-dj-standing-for-parliament/
Indie councillor Martin Shaw makes plea to East Devon Lib Dems in Guardian letters page
“It is ironic that Unite to Remain, founded by Heidi Allen when she was an Independent MP, has become a three-way deal between the Liberal Democrats, Greens and Plaid Cymru, excluding the only grassroots pro-remain independent with a chance of winning: Claire Wright in East Devon.
Claire won more than 21,000 votes (35%) in 2017 to the Tories’ 29,000, while the Lib Dems gained less than 1,500. Independents also won by far the largest share of votes and seats in this year’s council elections.
Can I appeal to the Liberal Democrats, who are admirably standing down for other independents like Dominic Grieve, to consider withdrawing their candidate so as to help East Devon get a pro-European MP?
Martin Shaw
Independent county councillor, Devon’
Owl says: Vote Lib Dem or Labour in East Devon – get Tory.
Labour delusion part 2: in it to win it?
Labour vote in the East Devon Constituency in the May 2017 elections:
District Council elections:
EDDC 2,126
Exeter City Council in local elections, part of EDDC constituency at General Elections:
1,344
(made up of St Loyes 550, Topsham 794)
Total 3,470
Exmouth Town Labour vote 265
(candidate Daniel Wilson – 5th of nine)
Vote Labour or Lib Dem – get Tory
East Devon: Vote Lib Dem or Labour – get Tory
Reposted comment:
“Here’s a letter I’ve just sent to local papers:
Tactical Voting or Confused.com?
I note that the Brexit Party is not fielding a candidate in the Devon East constituency. Is this by arrangement with Boris Johnson’s Conservative Party? Didn’t Boris tell us he wouldn’t enter into any such pact?
At the same time both the LibDems and Labour are standing, thus making a Conservative victory likely, as a look at the 2017 results indicates:
Hugo Swire (Con) – 29,306 (majority of 8,036)
Claire Wright (Independent) – 21,270;
Jan Ross (Labour) – 6,857;
Alison Eden (LibDem) – 1,468;
2 other Independents – 278.
As you can see, if the Labour and LibDem votes had gone to Claire Wright she would have won.
The LibDems are now happy to make a pact with Plaid Cymru and the Greens in order not to split the anti-Tory vote. Why then does the LibDem candidate not see that she cannot win from such a low base and why doesn’t the Labour candidate understand that he, too, is merely serving the Conservative’s ends?
So it’s a case of Vote LibDem or Labour and you get a Conservative.
Michael Temple”
How can Lib Dems have a Leader if she can’t lead?
Lib Dem Leader says it is up to local party groups to decide whether to put up a candidate – she can’t intervene.
A vote for a Lib Dem in East Devon is a vote for the Tories.
If the Leader of the Lib Dems can’t stop a Tory victory, surely “Leader” is an oxy-moron?
Why Claire Wright MP?
Watch out she’s behind you …
Lib Dems have no chance in winning East Devon. So, it begs the question: are they standing to ensure a Toeygets in again by splitting the non-Tory vote or simply to keep Claire Wright out … because? Or both?
“Patrick Kidd’s general election road trip: Watch out, they’re behind you!
Fat Charlie, the mascot of Little Chef, has been replaced by the Starbucks mermaid, the Olympic breakfast giving way to the mocha macchiato, and the long-loved Annie’s Tea Bar in the layby outside Honiton is now Emma’s Café. Yet as the A303 merges into the A30 on the second stage of my election road trip there is one thing that will surely never change: this Devon land east of Exeter will always be Conservative.
Or will it? Lace-rich Honiton, where the mayor, in a display of “no pain, no gain” philanthropy dating from the reign of King Stephen, throws piping-hot pennies at the people every July, has had Tory MPs since the 1880s, save for a 16-month hiccup in the 1920s. Neil Parish is surely safe with a 20,000 majority.
Head southwest, though, to Ottery St Mary, Sidmouth, Topsham and Budleigh Salterton and something different is happening. An independent anti-austerity councillor has come second twice in general elections in Devon East, cutting the Tory lead in 2017 to 8,000. With Labour 14,500 behind her and the Liberal Democrats losing their deposit last time, Claire Wright is now the opposition.”
Source: Times (pay wall)
Lib Dems stand down in Exeter to help Remain vote, but will not stand down for strongest candidate in East Devon
The decision whether to stand is apparently taken at local level. Exeter Lib Dems have agreedtheu will stand down in favour of the Green candidate.
East Devon Lib Dem candidate Eleanor Rylance has presumably refused to stand down for the strongest candidate in East Devon – Claire Wright. Far, far more likely to win than the Green in Exeter – she gained 35% of the vote in 2017.
If splitting the Remain vote leads to a Tory victory – your local Lib Dem group will be to blame.
In East Devon, if you vote Lib Dem you stand a good chance of getting a Tory.
Exeter story here:
https://www.devonlive.com/news/devon-news/lib-dems-reveal-not-contest-3511208
Swire insults Claire Wright, tries to sabotage her vote and says good riddance to East Devon
Hugo Swire where he belongs
If you want to read the article, find it yourself.
Owl will just offer a few quotes (with Owl comments) from it so you can see that Swire is sucking sour, sour grapes and is so happy to be quitting East Devon – where, in the last few years, he hasn’t even lived:
“Voting for an independent would not achieve anything.”
(he then goes on to suggest splitting Claire Wright’s vote between other parties to ensure she is not successful).
“Crucially, when Parliament is more important than ever, we do need people of quality.”
(Indeed, Hugo, pity we have had to wait so long for you to stand down to get within spitting distance of this).
“I will not interfere in the politics of East Devon because that would be unfair on the next MP but I will return to see friends and colleagues.”
(Well, to be fair you only came to East Devon to shake hands, schmooze and see friends so nothing changes there).
“It’s been a huge chunk of my life but, at the end of the day, I only did it because residents continued to return me.”
(Yep, he only did it so he could swan around the Middle East on the back of our votes).
Goodbye and good riddance. We await with bated breath the announcement of your replacement …
If you wish to donate to Claire Wright’s campaign
Claire Wright’s election launch speech
A cheerful pre-election Sunday photo
Independent parliamentary candidate Claire Wright at her launch party with well-known war journalist and former independent MP Martin Bell:
East Devon Watch 