The people of Blaenau Gwent have spoken. In last year's general election, New Labour fielded a candidate from an all-woman shortlist in one of their safest seats, only to be whipped soundly by Peter Law, a traditional Labour man (who ran as an independent) and Welsh Assembly member who was popular in the constituency and seemed a natural choice for parliament. The lesson being clearly that even in a safe seat, the big parties need to listen to their constituents.
Sadly, Law died in April, triggering yesterday's by-elections for both his Westminster and Welsh Assembly seats. Both elections were won by independents, the new AM being Law's wife, Trish. Again New Labour gets a bloody nose.
There have to be many reasons for this. It is often the case that a government party performs relatively poorly in by-elections, and there must have been a significant amount of votes cast out of loyalty and respect for a dead man, but I would like to think that this might be the start of the realisation in the old Labour heartlands that New Labour is no longer the party of the workers and the dispossessed. This is a party fighting over middle Britain, assuming that the traditional support will always be there — which it won't, of course, unless its needs are addressed.
Besides, this country needs a few more independent MP's. It helps to keep the major parties honest.
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