They share the same MP, but the people of these two Greater Manchester towns couldn’t be more divided

It is almost 80 years since Stalybridge and Hyde has not been represented by Labor in Parliament.

The two Tameside towns are “staunch Labour” – as one voter described it – and have elected their current MP Jonathan Reynolds at every election since 2010. And as voters prepare to go to the polls in exactly one month, every voter Manchester Evening News they said they don’t expect anything to change on July 4th.

But while some were happy with the area’s political status quo, calling Mr Reynolds “useful” and “good”, others found the lack of constituency change disappointing. It’s a divide that was particularly stark between the two towns themselves – voters in Stalybridge generally spoke positively of their incumbent MP.

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But on the road in Hyde, everyone I spoke to said they felt left behind and had lost all interest in voting.

“I know everything will be the same”

Dorothy Powell, 88, has lived in Stalybridge all her life. She said she liked current Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and found him “more trustworthy” than Labor leader Keir Starmer.

However, closer to home, she said she was generally happy with Jonathan Reynolds but disliked Angela Rayner in nearby Ashton-under-Lyne.

“I’ve lived in Stalybridge all my life, I was born here,” she said. “We’ve got Jonathan Reynolds here, he seems fine. I don’t like Angela Rayner. I think he made a mess of Ashton.

“That big car park in Ashton, everyone could go and get a car space and it was £1 for three hours. She stopped all that and now it costs £3.50 and is half empty. So I don’t like her ideas. But I like Jonathan Reynolds, I think that’s fine.”

However, Dorothy said she did not think she would vote in the next election. “People say to me ‘oh you should vote’ but I think you have the right not to vote if you don’t want to,” she said.

“I know everything will be the same. I have that feeling. The trash isn’t emptied enough, it’s dirty.”

Walking along the canal, Patrick Carey, 85, said he usually votes Labour, and at the next election.

“I’m happy with Jonathan Reynolds,” he said. “I’m from Ireland but I’m happy living here. I’ve made a good life – I’ve worked hard.”

“If he fixes the parking lot, he’ll have me for life!”

In Armentieres Square, Liz Attenborough, 41, runs Magpie’s Nest cafe and gift shop. She said car parking was a real concern for her as a local business owner – but that Jonathan Reynolds had always supported her.

“As a retailer in a city, it’s really important to have free parking because it’s what brings people into a city,” she told MEN “When you look at other areas that have free parking that’s close to city ​​centers. you also discover that they actually have a thriving street.

“When you look around here you’ve got a few car parks and everyone always says ‘oh that’s great because we’ve got Tesco’s’ but Tesco’s is actually a private car park owned by a private company. At any moment they could decide to charge for it and that would have a massive impact on our business.

“Things like parking spaces outside mean you can only get in for an hour. We have a lot of older customers who can’t walk very far, so having places like this around the stores is hugely important for older people. People think there’s a little bit of a movement to get people out of cars and into city centers and that’s great, but there’s a lot of people who can’t do that.

She added that while she admires a local initiative where volunteers help clean up the city, she believes it shouldn’t be up to them to keep the streets clean, adding that people “should be proud of the city.”

Back to the election, she said she thinks she will vote for Jonathan Reynolds.

“I always vote,” she added. “I don’t know much about politics. I’d probably vote for Jonny because he’s always been pro-business. He always helped us with things, he comes shopping and comes to the cafe with his child.

“It’s not just about him doing it for a PR moment, it’s just going out with his kids doing normal things. So I think I’d probably vote for him again. And if he fixes the parking, he’ll have me for life!” “

“Know the area, know the people”

Cynthia Riley, 67, spoke to the MEN while shopping in Stalybridge. With dual American and British citizenship, she said she would vote for Jonathan Reynolds after he helped her get her citizenship many years ago.

“I never see my MP but I will vote Labor because my husband used to,” she said. “I’m a dual citizen and Jonathan Reynolds helped me get my British citizenship so I have a connection with him.

“I think he’s pretty good. He’s been around a while, he knows the area, he knows the people, and I’m very happy with him. I like what he’s doing.”

A few miles away in Hyde, the locals have a very different perspective. Go shopping Hyde in the market, a man said he would not vote in the election because he “doesn’t see anything changing”.

“Well, you can see what this is like,” he said, gesturing toward the sparsely populated square. “We had what, 60 or 70 years of work and what did they do? Nothing at all.

“Jonathan Reynolds is always down in London,” he continued. “We don’t see him at all. I don’t think anything will change. I said I wouldn’t vote, but it depends on who is running. I wouldn’t vote Red or Blue.”

He mentioned George Galloway, who recently won the Rochdale by-election for the UK Labor Party, but said he believed it was because he made the Gaza war a critical policy.

“we’re fed up”

Just a few meters away, sitting on a bench, a man and a woman who wished to remain anonymous told the MEN that they had lost all interest in politics.

“I don’t care about politics,” said one. “I won’t vote – we’ve had enough.” Asked what they would like to see change in the area, they said, “Everything.”

“It’s rubbish,” they said. But you won’t get a change from Work around here. It is firm red.”

Waiting for a bus just outside Hyde Square, Tony said he didn’t feel any MP in the area was doing their job “properly”.

“I just want them to do the job right,” he said. “I don’t know much about politics and I won’t vote. I won’t get anywhere, it won’t make a difference.

“I’ve lived in Hyde for 36 years, it’s always working class. They always say they’re going to do things, but they don’t, so I’ve lost interest.”