Home Secretary James Cleverly is knocking on doors in Nuneaton and this is what the locals told him

It’s not every day the Home Secretary knocks on your door – but that’s what happened to the residents of one Nuneaton street. James Cleverly, who is responsible for the safety of the nation, called in the city yesterday afternoon, June 19.

It was something of a homecoming for the minister, who revealed to CoventryLive that his grandmother was born and bred in Nuneaton. She lived in the town before meeting her grandfather and moving to Wiltshire in the 1930s.

After returning for a fundraiser, it was his first time back in the city where his family’s roots lie. Spotted alongside Tory candidate Marcus Jones door knocking and canvassing in Hayle Close before joining Coventry Live outside the Acorn pub for a quick catch up.

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He spoke of the reception he received as he knocked on the doors of locals in the quiet residential neighborhood. “It was a good response,” he said. “There were a lot of smiles, a lot of recognition for Marcus which was nice to see and a lot of people saying ‘oh hello Mr Jones’ which is quite traditional really.”

He added: “It was good, one of the things that really struck me is that people ‘get it’, they understand what’s at stake and that the last few years have been tough because of Covid and the war in Ukraine.

“They’re not always happy about everything, but it’s also very, very, very clear that they haven’t been won by the Labor Party, that really struck me. Hand on heart people say ‘you must do something, the cost of living has been difficult’ and just as you are about to explain what the plans are, often completely unprompted, people will then say ‘But we can’t have a Labor Government, I don’t want those taxes, they destroyed the economy last time.” So I think I understand what’s at stake and it really shows.

“There are things they want us to fix. The cost of living has been absolutely critical and that’s why the inflation numbers that have gone down and down and down really, really matter because it affects every family and every person in every family. They said they want us to cut taxes, and we’ve started doing that, and we’re committed to doing more.”

“And maybe because they’re knocking on the door, there’s crime and the police and people like to have more people on the streets, the people of Nuneaton like to have police officers on the streets won’t be the most surprising headline, but they still like it the fact that we have increased the police and they like the fact that there will be more of them.

“And again, maybe because I’m home secretary, people bring up immigration, of course they do and I suspect they would have anyway if I wasn’t here and they wanted to deal with it. And again, I think they recognize that the Labor Party is very weak on this, and they also recognize that, maybe they like some of the things that Farage is saying, but they also recognize that they’re not going to get a reformist government, they’re either we (the Conservatives) be Labor and that takes us back to where we started, that they really don’t want a Labor government.”

Labor has held particularly big, popular events in recent weeks, bringing some of the party’s biggest players to the town, including deputy leader Angela Rayner on the battle bus from nearby Ambleside Club and leader Keir Starmer visiting a school in Ansley – which falls within the Nuneaton constituency.

The Conservative campaign has been much more low-key, with an emphasis on door-knocking, so what does he make of Labour’s huge efforts in the city? Is it a seat I think they won from the Tories after 14 years?

The Home Secretary said: “I think if they (the Mucs) were that confident, they wouldn’t send a lot of people, they would send them elsewhere. The bottom line is that they (Munichists) know that if they want to take this seat from Marcus, it will be difficult because Marcus delivered results and during elections people remember such things, they remember who sustained. community, they will remember who supported getting more buys on the streets and cracking down on anti-social behavior and they will recognize who has invested in the constituency and I think that will keep Marcus in place.”

Labor deputy leader Angela Rayner said winning the Nuneaton seat would be a “symbolic moment” for the party, especially as Lord Cameron said he knew the Tories had won power in 2015 when the Nuneaton result was called, so he believes he that will be a badge of honor for them?

“They (Labour) know it would be a tough job to get it (the seat) from Marcus because he was a very, very good MP and I also recognize that this area (Nuneaton) was a part of the country where the work we have. we did with Leveling Up and to bring money into town centers and to make sure we don’t have a government that only thinks about London and the South East.

“The bottom line is that what we’re seeing more and more with the disconnect with the Labor Party and what real people think is that they (Labour) are heavily influenced by the conversations they have at their parties in London and they’ve lost their completely followed. of the conversations you have to have with people who actually have to graft for a living.

“I’ve spoken to people here (Nuneaton) who run small businesses and people who really understand the importance of looking after the money you spend and the money you earn. That’s why I think people here (Nuneaton) over the last decade and a half have voted Tory and I think that’s why they’ll continue to vote for Marcus.”

The national reaction

When asked whether long-serving local Tory MPs such as Mr Jones will feel the brunt of the backlash and anger from the wider Tory party – including the party’s Covid gate, damning allegations and the D-Day controversy – he was quick to say: “All of us when you wear the blue rosette, when you wear the Conservative brand, we know that part of what people will think of you will be what the party has done nationally.

“I know there have been some frustrations, but you have to remember that because of the decisions we made, we now have children who are the best readers in the Western world, because of the decisions we made, we have levels record lows. employment, because of the decisions we made we now have 20,000 more police officers, because of the decisions we made we now have inflation up to 2% and because of the decisions we made, as a party, Ukraine still has a chance to defend itself against Russia.

“None of us are claiming that things have been perfect nationally, but we have done a lot of good things nationally. But ultimately what people vote for here (in Nuneaton) and what they should have in mind is which individual they want fighting in their corner in Westminster.

“Regardless of the national picture, ultimately the people here in Nuneaton can send a person to London to fight and, I don’t want to tell people what to think, but my guess is that the smart move is to ensure “It’s Marcus.”

It’s been a whirlwind city visit as he prepares to hit the A5 to Tamworth before returning to London, as the Home Secretary officially announces today (June 20).

With family roots in Nuneaton, it would be hard for him to forget the town, but he left his visit with a little less on his shoes and the voices of the locals ringing loudly in his ears.

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