Six Labour Cllrs Quit in Reading

Out of the blue Labour announced that six of their Councillors are quitting in May! It was predictable that a few of them would loose in the local elections in May, and that some of them would find an excuse to absent them selves from it, but the number and suddenness of it is surprising. I’m sure some will say it’s 'the rats leaving a sinking ship', or 'cowards quitting while they are ahead'. That would be a bit cruel, but they are deserting before they get kicked out.

A few years ago Labour deselected a sitting MP in Reading East, and that so upset the electorate that they managed to loose what had been a safe seat. If that was killing the golden goose, this is more like killing their our hopes. What had been predicted to be a severe loss may turn out to be a rout, voters won’t like to feel abandoned.

Tom Crisp is quitting in Battle Ward, a year after taking over as lead Transport Cllr. He has had a very high profile with the one way IRD scheme, but Labours reversal of this has made them look lost and confused. In 2004 Tom got more votes than his fellow Labour Cllrs, so to loose their most popular candidate is quite a blow.