On Thursday 30th April we completed the last of five parliamentary candidate hustings in Llanelli. The Liberal candidate has been a no show, without so much as a leaflet, but all the other candidates have got to the majority if not all of the meetings. All of the active candidates are articulate and quite presentable, a big change compared to what I'm used to in the county council. Nice to see so many people interested and attending but in every case most of the audience seemed made up of Labour, Plaid and other party supporters rather than the undecided. With both parties apparently believing that I am running purely to deliberately and maliciously steal their votes in order to help the other, the atmosphere has been interesting to say the least.
Much of the campaign has polarised between Plaid and Labour with UKIP confident of a good third place. With our meagre resources, we have used the free postal facility to send a modest leaflet to every house and business in the constituency, but had to find the money for 39,500 leaflets, around a thousand pounds in total. Many thanks to all who have contributed and are still donating.
There was no money for newspaper advertising and we are not big enough to qualify for the party political TV slots - where the filming is at your expense but the transmission free.
The nearest I got was a one minute slot for Carmarthenshire Radio/ Scarlet FM local radio this morning. It doesn't go out until the polls have closed on Thursday for their results programme at 10pm. My one chance at a party political broadcast! To save you the pain of waiting, here's the text.
Myself in one minute:
I'm Doctor Sian Caiach, 57,mother of four and Llanelli resident for 21 years.I came here to work at Prince Phillip Hospital as a Consultant Orthopaedic Surgeon. I lost my career after whistle-blowing to expose greedy colleagues using public NHS money for themselves.
People first/Gwerin Gyntaf is a new movement advocating proper representation of voters with honesty and openness and real consultation.
The UK is economically and politically bankrupt. Too many politicians have lost the plot and put themselves and/or their parties before the people they represent.
People First Representatives promise to be honest and open, not join organised parties or coalitions and vote case by case on behalf of their own constituents, who they will consult before and not after decisions are made.
Support People First because we will support you!
Much of the campaign has polarised between Plaid and Labour with UKIP confident of a good third place. With our meagre resources, we have used the free postal facility to send a modest leaflet to every house and business in the constituency, but had to find the money for 39,500 leaflets, around a thousand pounds in total. Many thanks to all who have contributed and are still donating.
There was no money for newspaper advertising and we are not big enough to qualify for the party political TV slots - where the filming is at your expense but the transmission free.
The nearest I got was a one minute slot for Carmarthenshire Radio/ Scarlet FM local radio this morning. It doesn't go out until the polls have closed on Thursday for their results programme at 10pm. My one chance at a party political broadcast! To save you the pain of waiting, here's the text.
Myself in one minute:
I'm Doctor Sian Caiach, 57,mother of four and Llanelli resident for 21 years.I came here to work at Prince Phillip Hospital as a Consultant Orthopaedic Surgeon. I lost my career after whistle-blowing to expose greedy colleagues using public NHS money for themselves.
People first/Gwerin Gyntaf is a new movement advocating proper representation of voters with honesty and openness and real consultation.
The UK is economically and politically bankrupt. Too many politicians have lost the plot and put themselves and/or their parties before the people they represent.
People First Representatives promise to be honest and open, not join organised parties or coalitions and vote case by case on behalf of their own constituents, who they will consult before and not after decisions are made.
Support People First because we will support you!
I think you need to learn from Scotland. The establishment parties (Labour Tory Lib) are not frightened of candidates like yourself that divide their opposition- they welcome them. Thats how Labour win so many Welsh seats on way less than the plurality. Divide and rule. They are scared of the anti establishment majority of voters backing one anti establishment party. In Scotland the SNP . In seats like Llanelli it must be Plaid, whatever their faults.
ReplyDeleteI've great respect for the way you stuck to your guns re- Stradey etc, but for Westminster and Assembly elections you need to get behind the only show in town that can kick the establishment where it hurts,
I'm not entirely sure why Plaid did not benefit from the increased TV coverage and the "progressive alliance" with the SNP and Greens, other than losing the tactical votes they used to get from tories to "keep Labour out".
DeleteI would be more impressed with Plaid if they did get the habit locally of kicking the establishment, they have the numbers to do that in the county council, and they may yet do so You never know.
We have different politics to Scotland but Plaid would do well to model themselves on the SNP, like concentrating on Civic Nationalism, not wavering one jot over independence, building organisation in all areas of the country, not ever contemplating disasterous coalitions with labour etc. and always actively playing the long game rather than chasing short term goals. Some of the new SNP MP's are not long term SNP members but more recent recruits from the wider Yes movement, including former Labour party members. Plaid are nowhere near that yet.
In any case, our PF ideas on proper respresentation and standards in public life are what is promoted when we stand in elections. I doubt I've made much impact on any other candidate's votes but the hustings mean i've actually made some of the other candiates and the audience at least consider politics in a new light.
Another interesting blog Sian I am also following you on twitter. Good luck!
ReplyDeleteJennifer Brown (whistleblower)