Frank Turney (left) says Keir Starmer is a Conservative in Labour clothing (Image: Andy Stenning)
The Merseyside town of Bootle is not just a Labour stronghold, it's a seat so red the saying goes that votes here are weighed rather than counted. Since 1945, a Labour MP has emerged victorious in the constituency just north of Liverpool at every general election and last year it ranked as the second safest seat in the country. Indeed only nearby Chorley under Sir Lindsay Hoyle had a safer seat. And tradition dictates that the House of Commons’ speaker is unchallenged by major political parties at elections.
Wander Bootle's streets and you'll be told that locals vote “with their hearts, not their minds”, often following their parents' example. The gap between Labour's Peter Dowd and Reform UK in second in terms of individual votes was even larger than in Chorley.
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But when I visit on a cold and overcast day, I find a similar cooling towards Labour to what you would expect to find in some of the party's most marginal seats.
Apathy and anger are swirling around these parts, named among the UK's most deprived areas.
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Bootle is located north of Liverpool (Image: Andy Stenning/Daily Express)
Up close, Bootle looks like it has seen better days. The closest the area has to a centre is around the Strand shopping centre, which is currently having some work done to it. Customers are using temporary toilets on the ground floor of its car park.
Incidentally, it is the mall that two-year-old Jamie Bulger was taken from before his murder in 1993.
Outside on Stanley Road are some pubs patronised by senior gentlemen keeping an eye on races at Cheltenham with a pint of lager or two; a pound bakery, barbers, a McDonald’s, a Burger King, banks and some independent businesses.
Residents sit on benches, some alone, others with a friend, taking a break from their shopping. Behind them, a wall of closed shutters cover the entrances to multiple stores, and a former Wetherspoon pub, The Merton Inn, is still boarded up opposite the magistrates' court. On a wall in large letters are written the words: “In Bootle we look after each other.”.
Bootle is one of the UK's most deprived areas (Image: Andy Stenning/Daily Express)
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The sentiment is rooted in bleak reality: in April 2024 officials noted in Bootle’s Linacre ward 46% of older adults were affected by poverty. Meanwhile, Rachel Reeves is said to be considering cuts to Universal Credit and changes to PIP payments.
Residents fear these cuts could hit those in need, of whom there are many in the area.
As he is walking past Aldi, a lesser spotted Tory voter, Barry Barton, a warehouse operative, says: “Labour can shove a red rosette on a chimp on a podium and they’ll vote for it. Honestly, they’re that thick.”
Mr Barton is worried about Reeves taking a sledgehammer to benefit payments.
He adds: "It’s just going to hit normal people, the people that need it most. They’re supposed to be the people’s party.” He adds that his workplace has already been forced to increase its prices due to Reeves’ National Insurance hike for employers.
In the Wild Rose pub, sat with a pint and paper open on a page with horse racing odds is Frank Turney. The 77-year-old says: “I voted Labour all my life. But Starmer is not Labour, I’m sorry about that. He’s a Tony Blair, a Conservative in Labour clothing.” The Jeremy Corbyn fan adds: “I was always left wing. I can see now the Chancellor is going to hit welfare, and just as we voted a Labour government in. But yet we haven’t got one.”
The predicted cuts would affect many locally, Frank thinks. “They thought they were made for life,” he says.
Frank Turney fears Rachel Reeves' benefit cuts will cause real damage (Image: Andy Stenning/Daily Express)
“They’re going to crucify the welfare system.” The retired plasterer himself is on Pension Credit, and was a recipient of the Winter Fuel Allowance before it was culled. Over the winter, he chose to keep warm in the pub. “That actually hurt me. Yeah, I just came here.”
Carol Clague, 70, voted for Labour in July. She says: “So many people, [so many] kids are suffering. It’s like going back to the 1950s.” The Betfred worker would not vote the same next time. She adds: “I don’t think I’d vote at all. If it was still going, I’d do the Monster Raving Loony Party.” On the money that will be saved by cutting benefits, the lifelong Liverpudlian said: “They’ll probably say it’ll go to poor countries.”
Carol’s daughter, Emma, 45, who is currently unemployed and a recipient of Universal Credit, says the community has to “do more for each other these days”. Locals feel powerless, the former cleaner says, and she is worried about the upcoming welfare cuts.
Tracey, who did not wish to provide her second name, has trouble with her mobility. Sitting on her scooter and wrapped warm in her purple coat, she says: “I’m not happy with Labour. I’m not happy with any of them. They’re all just out for themselves. They don’t care about the people.” Asked about her views on the cuts to welfare, Tracey adds: “I reckon it’s an absolute joke. I was laid off from my job.
People feel powerless in Bootle, Emma Clague, pictured with mum Carol, says (Image: Andy Stenning/Daily Express)
“I’m currently claiming Universal Credit and PIP. It could affect me.” She is already having to use cheaper versions of products she usually buys to save money amid huge energy bills. On whether she felt betrayed, the former charity shop manager says: “Oh God, yeah. They’re not sticking to what they said.”
She adds: “I wouldn’t vote Labour again. I’d probably vote, because you have to, don’t you? I’d probably vote for one of the lower parties. It’s not going to be a Labour, Conservative type of vote. I’ll probably consider Reform.”
Behind the bar of The Cat and Fiddle pub stands Richie Sewell. He says it would be cheaper for him to visit his local Asda and buy beer to sell on than purchase it from his suppliers.
“Labour, as far as I’m concerned, is for the workers, and they’re not helping the workers,” the pub manager says. He adds the venue’s owner will have to fork out more as a result of Reeves' National Insurance hike, but part-time staff’s hours cannot be cut as they would not qualify for tax credits.
“There’s only two of us here who are full-time, so one of us loses hours to help them. Or it’s not worth them doing it, and then they go, and then you’ve got no staff.” The barman is also angered by the Winter Fuel Payment cut and scrapping of free TV licences for over 75s.
Richie Sewell is the manager of The Cat and Fiddle pub (Image: Andy Stenning/Daily Express)
“They’ve worked all their life, paid everything. But, when it comes to their twilight years, they get nothing back, which I think is wrong. And there’s other people, who’ve never worked in their life, have 1,800 kids, and get all the benefits and they’re better off than people at work.”
Richie adds that there is “nothing” for young people locally, and shops are “closing left, right and centre”. “It’s all barbers' now. There’s only so many people who can get their hair cut. I can get my hair cut three times if I want. There’s just nothing to attract you to the area.” At the moment, he would still vote Labour. “If you don’t vote Labour, there’s no other choice.”
Alison Readdy, 38, a stay at home mum, is walking with her husband, who is pushing one of their daughters in a pram. When asked about the Government, she says: “It’s c***. They’re not doing a lot. I think pensioners are suffering, I think workers are suffering. They’re not paid enough. They’re changing benefits, I don’t think it’s going to work.”
A person she knows receives PIP, and it gives them “independence”. But she is chiefly concerned about the NHS. “I spent 15 hours in A&E the other week with my other daughter, and the corridors were full of people on beds. It’s ridiculous. That’s because there’s not enough staff. They don’t get paid enough, and there’s the workload.”
The Merton Inn in Bootle is boarded up (Image: Andy Stenning/Daily Express)
Another resident, who wished to be known only as Tony, sits on a bench. A scar on his forehead is a sign of recent surgery needed after he suffered a seizure.
He has also had a hip replacement, and now he needs an operation on his spine, which he says he may have to wait up to 47 weeks for. The Scouser tells the Express he has never voted because “nothing’s going to change”. Tony adds: “There’s a certain amount of money, and it’s getting smaller and smaller and smaller, and there is more that we need to do with it.” The only party he would dream of casting his ballot for is Reform.
Vicky McDermott, 66, who has worked at the Stems florist for 29 years, is also looking to Nigel Farage’s party. While attending to a bloom, she says: “I didn’t vote, but if I had have done, I’d have voted for Farage. I shall be voting next time most definitely. I like him.”
On the Government, Ms McDermott adds: “They’re trying their best, but I just don’t think they’re going about things very well. They’re trying to pick up where the Tories left off. It must be a difficult job for them. But I do think a lot more empathy needs to be put into their way of thinking.”
Maureen Nelson thinks Keir Starmer is doing quite a good job overall (Image: Andy Stenning/Daily Express)
Some, however, are more sympathetic to the Government. “I’m one of the few that didn’t vote for them, I’m afraid,” says 68-year-old Maureen Nelson. The retired legal secretary has been “impressed” by the way Sir Keir is handling the Ukraine crisis. “On the whole, I think he’s doing a pretty good job,” she adds.
And Rachel Jones, 35, who is currently unemployed after working as a credit adviser, says at the bar of The Cat and Fiddle: “To be honest, I think the Government gets blamed a lot. People as a whole make very rash decisions and blame the Government instead of looking in the mirror and blaming themselves. It feels like they can’t win sometimes.
“The Government is a frontier, taking on all this c***. You’ve got to admire them for doing it, being the receiver of all this blame.”
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But with those still voicing their support for Labour becoming harder to find even in a place like Bootle, Starmer, Reeves and friends will know that a chimp in a rosette just won’t cut it come the next local election.
Rachel Jones says the Government always gets the blame (Image: Andy Stenning/Daily Express)