New MP Matt vows to work hard for his constituents
THE new MP for Reading East has vowed to get to work for his constituents straight away.
Labour’s Matt Rodda provided one of the Election night shocks last Thursday as Reading East, which includes parts of Wokingham borough, went from blue to red.
It had been expected that Government minister Rob Wilson would retain the seat he had held since 2005, not least as he had increased his majorities in 2010 and 2015. But on Thursday, Matt Rodda overturned a 6,500 majority with a 16% swing to see him capture the seat first won by Labour in its 1997 landslide.
The former Reading Borough councillor for Katesgrove ward was himself taken by surprise by the result.
He told The Wokingham Paper: “I’m very pleased and also very surprised as I didn’t think we were going to win. It’s amazing to see the support that we had.”
Mr Rodda, who is the second Labour MP to hold Reading East since its formation in 1983, attributes his success to the way in which Labour’s campaign resonated with the constituency.
He said: “I think it’s two or three things really. One was the deep cuts to local health services and schools; people were concerned about the Conservatives going for a hard Brexit, and also the need for more affordable housing. On all these things, Labour had a positive alternative and I think people recognised that.”
The campaign for the new MP was boosted by a rally held by Jeremy Corbyn in the car park of Rivermead – at the very edge of Reading East – days before the election itself. It is estimated that thousands of people turned out to hear the Labour leader speak.
“After 12 years we have the opportunity to change things In Reading East. I was proud of the national results, which was a good result for Labour and a poor one for the Conservatives,” Mr Rodda said. “It followed a campaign in which Labour showed it had serious policies in a fullycosted manifesto, which related directly to local concerns about affordable housing and the effects of austerity on public services, and in which Labour leader, Jeremy Corbyn, connected with the electorate and showed real leadership.”
But Mr Rodda said it was the issues on the doorsteps that mattered to him, with the same things coming up time and again.
He said: “I think the same [issues came up from] people across the constituency with a few additional local things, but the same patterns occurred.
“People are concerned about getting to see their local GP, there’s been really quite concerning cuts to schools in Woodley. There’s been a campaign against that obviously.
“We’re very concerned about people’s rights for good education are protected and we’ll be campaigning for those things – and to try and find more affordable housing in the area.”
He vowed to get into action straight away, aiming to “protect the local health service, campaign for fair funding for schools, stop the Conservatives hard Brexit and help get families on the housing ladder.
“I intend to be a hard working local constituency MP and I’ll be working on their behalf straight away.”
Mr Rodda was initially a journalist, worked as a civil servant for the Department of Education and also in the charity sector.