North Shropshire by-election: Transport Secretary in town as campaigning peaks
A Cabinet minister was among the hoards of campaigners hitting the roads in North Shropshire with just three days to go until the by-election.
Transport Secretary Grant Shapps joined Conservative candidate Neil Shastri-Hurst to sites making up part of his election pledges on roads and railways.
Together with Dean Carroll, the Conservative Shropshire councillor in charge of highways, the two visited Mile End Roundabout in Oswestry where a second island has been built and new roads are being installed in a bid to cut congestion.
Mile End connects the A5 and the A483, two of the busiest roads in Shropshire which are both single carriageways either side of Oswestry.
Dr Shastri-Hurst, who is from Birmingham, has said he is keen to turn the A5 into a dual carriageway - a plan former MP Owen Paterson has long advocated but which has never received government funding.
There are also proposals to build a Pant-Llanymynech bypass to reduce traffic on the A483. Both of the schemes, which have been proposed for decades, have been described as "a top priority" by Councillor Carroll.
Oswestry Railway station was also in the tour as well as various roads across the constituency.
Mr Shapps said: "It was great to visit North Shropshire and talk to Neil about his transport plan. I’m delighted to see this government’s investment at work in North Shropshire, with diggers already in the ground.
"To keep our progress going, North Shropshire needs a hardworking local MP like Neil. He has a plan to get North Shropshire moving and he has the experience to make it happen.
"I’m keen to work with Neil and Shropshire Council to get things done. So I’m pleased to see Neil leading on the local issues that matter instead of playing politics."
North Shropshire is traditionally a Conservative stronghold, however bookmakers now have the Lib Dems as favourites to win the seat ahead of Dr Shastri-Hurst whose chances seem to have been damaged by Boris Johnson's recent difficulties around sleaze and lockdown rule breaking allegations.
In an election which pundits are saying is too close to call, the main Government opposition parties say they have had good response on the doorstep with the Lib Dems and Labour each saying they are the front runners to take the seat.
About 500 Liberal Democrat supporters from across the country took to the streets of North Shropshire at the weekend in support of their candidate Helen Morgan.
Helen praised the support saying the volunteers had delivered leaflets to, and knocked on, between 23,000 and 24,000 doors over the two days.
Meanwhile Labour candidate Ben Wood said: “With only a few days to go, we’re fighting for every vote, putting forward our fresh and exciting plan for the future of our towns and villages.
“The Number 10 Christmas Party is a game changer, but this isn’t the first time people in North Shropshire have felt taken for granted. The closure of ambulance stations is turning life-long Tory voters over to Labour.
“This election is a two-horse race between Labour and the Tories. We have a real chance of making history here, as long as people don’t waste their vote on fringe parties. I’m really pleased that in the past few days, I’ve met local Lib Dem and Green supporters who will be lending their vote for a local Labour candidate.”
Duncan Kerr, the Green Party candidate, said: “The Green Party has run a positive campaign built on our strong track record of local activism and our success in the local elections. Residents have responded very positively to our message both in the hustings and on the doorstep. We are confident that on Friday morning we will see a significant improvement in our vote share.”
Meanwhile Brexit was back on the agenda as a former UKIP Member of the European Parliament urged voted to back the Conservatives.
James Carver, a staunch Eurosceptic who represented Shropshire and beyond in the European Parliament from 2014 to 2019, said not voting Conservative at the by-election on Thursday would lead to victory for a ‘Remain’ MP which he said would be out-of-kilter with local opinion.
Mr Carver said: “North Shropshire played a crucial role in securing Brexit – both by voting to leave the EU in 2016 and by voting to get Brexit done in 2019. The people of North Shropshire don’t want to reopen the Brexit debate. And they certainly don’t want an MP who spends all their time campaigning to rejoin the EU.
“Those who share the pro-Brexit view need to back Dr Neil Shastri-Hurst in this by-election. Splintering off to another party or not voting at all risks letting a Remain MP win.”
In total 14 candidates are standing for election in Thursday's vote, the results of which are expected in the early hours of Friday morning.
