Well, another great day on the doorsteps of Pinhoe. I met up with Cllr Moira Macdonald (after the rugby world cup final!) at the junction of Pinn Lane and Harts Lane and covered all the Monkerton area. What a beautiful area it is too - with some lovely houses, and incredibly friendly people. I was made to feel very welcome.
Over the whole weekend, chatting with people, it was fascinating to see that I just could not predict voting intentions! Some of the biggest, most impressive homes on Pinn Lane I found were Labour supporters. Mind you, maybe I shouldn't be surprised now that polls are routinely showing that people do not feel the Conservative-led government are handling the economy at all well.
There are some clear issues emerging as local concerns - but there is also great concern about countywide issues - particularly the local cuts to services; and indeed nationally - particularly (not surprisingly) the squeeze that everyone is feeling on their disposable income. Those in rented accommodation are particularly anxious as rents become more unaffordable while of course inflation across other area (not least utility bills and petrol) continue to rise too.
Pinhoe is always a straight fight between the Conservatives and Labour with a very modest Lib Dem vote. That said I've chatted with a few former Lib Dem voters this weekend. I say "former" because they expressed their shock at how the Lib Dem career politicians at the top are propping up this Tory government, and one said he would never vote Lib Dem again. "Labour's not perfect," he said (fair point, and I wouldn't argue!) "but you've got my vote from now on. Nothing could be worse than this shower."
One other thing struck me about what I've seen meeting the people of Pinhoe, and that is the level of community action here. David and Margaret Mogford work tirelessly running the Pinhoe Community Association. Dave is also a great salesman, and got me signed up to membership on the spot! Frank explained to me at some length the involvement he and his wife have in a charity that takes aid to Eastern Europe - specifically Moldova - with the help and support of local churches and businesses. I was involved with a similar project some years back linked to orphanages in Romania, so I know the effort that is required to sort out the logistics of such things. Elsewhere, a coffee morning was going on to raise funds for an education project in Peru. (I hope that it was the local Amantani charity - we host those chaps at my work office in Exeter CVS!)
So, a great weekend on the doorsteps and I have been made to feel most welcome by residents and locals in the pub! I'm going to enjoy living here! :-)
Now, I've had the rugby and the doorstep deliveries -so if you'll excuse me, I now have just the small matter of the Manchester derby followed by the Mighty Chelsea taking on QPR to go....
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