St Austell and Newquay: Young people want to see the back of the Conservatives in the general election

The clock is ticking and the general election is getting closer every day. With the future of our country being pulled in all directions, we visited the various Cornish constituencies to see how people are feeling ahead of the big day.

What pressing issues weigh on their minds, what do they think about party policies and what change would they like to see in the country? During my recent visit to St Austell and Newquay, I came away with the impression that people feel quite torn this time and just don’t know who to trust and what to believe.

The seat held by Tory incumbent Steve Double for the past nine years, the latest YouGov poll suggests Labor will take him with 33.5% of the vote compared to the Tories’ 26.5%. But on the streets, people don’t know where to turn. That is, unless it is the young who, fearing for their future, are eager for change – whatever that change might bring.

READ MORE: Cornwall General Election 2024 – photo ID, how to find polling stations and more

READ MORE: St Austell and Newquay candidates for the 2024 general election

On the streets of two of Cornwall’s biggest towns and one of its most unusual constituencies, given that they are on both coasts where priorities are very different, it’s fair to say that there is a real gulf when it comes to vote. If our visit had happened, it could go either way.

On St Austell’s main street, Denis McLean, 78, tells us “I just don’t believe them”. As a pensioner in recent years, he said pensions and the NHS remain hot topics of conversation in his home. Originally from Surrey, he currently lives in St Austell and only did so after Steve Double took over.

He is a lifelong Labor supporter who grew up in a mining area, but this time he is swinging the other way and thinks he will vote Tory. Because he is unimpressed by Keir Stamer’s blunder over scrapping the pension lump sum, which the Labor leader has since changed his mind about.

“My health has declined since the pandemic and I will soon be returning home to Surrey,” Mr McLean said. “I’m a bit skeptical about Rishi Sunak and all these pension promises. I don’t believe them and feel he’s well known for lying, but I like a lot about him.

“He’s dynamic, charismatic and always has a quick response or quick avoidance procedure. I like the guy, but I’m not convinced by his politics.”

He fears the Tories are tempting people like him with policies because he is retired. “I’m comfortable, but it would be nice to know that the triple lock pension will keep my money in my pocket.

“I like what (Rishi Sunak) has to say about it, and he promises a lot of good things, but it basically comes down to whether I can trust them to deliver, and I don’t know if I can.”

As for the local candidates, he said he’s not very computer savvy and hasn’t seen any of the candidates campaign in his area, so he’s not able to make a judgment call based on that. “I would have liked to have met somebody and questioned them about some of their policies, but that didn’t happen,” he said.

What do other parts of Cornwall have to say? Read about the other constituencies here…

Kaitlyn Murray, 15, may not be able to vote yet, but she has some strong opinions about this upcoming election. Living between London and Cornwall and having just finished high school, she is not very impressed with the Tories’ plans to bring back National Service, something that could really affect her in the coming years.

“I don’t particularly like Rishi Sunak and I don’t think people should do National Service when they turn 18 because not everyone will want to do it,” she said. “I want to be a police officer when I’m older so personally it will be disrupted and I’m sure other people’s lives will be disrupted in terms of what they want to do by having to do national service.

She said she felt it was “wrong” for people to be fined simply for not taking part as it interfered with their life plans. However, she knows very well that she cannot have a say in anything that will affect her for years to come if the Tories win.

“I don’t really have an opinion on the rest and I don’t follow it that much, but I think not many people want to do National Service and I think it’s wrong, to be honest.”

In Newquay, people gave the impression of a similar division. Of those I spoke to, many were either not keen to vote at all or were still seemingly on the fence about the way forward.

James Kerwin, 63, grew up in one of Cornwall’s most deprived areas, St Blazey, and now lives in St Austell. He said he didn’t see the point of voting because he didn’t think it would make a difference.

“I’ve never voted and everything is just … there’s never any change,” he said. And he’s not alone, a lot of other people weren’t even interested in the General Election and just didn’t want to talk about it.

Thomas Collins, 78, has lived in Newquay for many years and knows what he plans to do – he will vote Conservative. Now retired, having worked in all sorts of jobs from nursing to truck driving in his lifetime, he said: “A big thing for me is the police. You never see a policeman again.

“I’ve lived here for about 30 years. I think we could do with a lot more police in the area and I think people could learn more manners,” he said of his wishes for the country’s future.

“I am going to Rishi Sunak. I think Keir Starmer will make a bloody mess of the country, I really do. I was Labor years ago but have been a Tory for years now.

“I think it’s the best way to go and I think things will turn around, I really do.” He said he would like to see the NHS “fixed” and believes the Tories are the ones to do that.

“I think our local councils should put more money into hospitals and nurses. It’s getting bad.”

But the younger generation, they want meaningful change to be part of their future and can’t see the Tories getting them there. We caught up with three Newquay teenagers who it’s fair to say won’t be giving Steve Double their vote.

Sienna Charlton, 19, would love to vote Green but says she will go the tactical voting route and tick the Labor box on July 4. “I’m not really into politics and I didn’t know much about it until recently. but for me it’s more about tactical voting, as long as they’re not tories I’m not too fussed.

“I think we need different people (in charge) and I want change. I’d like to vote Green but they don’t stand much of a chance here so my tactical vote would be Labour, although I’m still not entirely happy with Labor it’s second best to me wanting a change .”

Evan Moyle and Luca Stokes, both 18, will vote for Green on the day. Evan said: “I turned 18 this year and this is my first real chance to vote and I’m voting green. It has always been Tory and Labor and I just want to see something else.

“Green is the party I agree with the most and I want to see what they will do if they come to power. I think we need something different and something to change after all these years.”

Luca added: “I’m going green because it’s the lesser of all evils. The reason I’m going green and not voting tactically is because I think that’s how you get people you don’t want in power.”

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