Voters bemoan weak leadership
AFTER three Islamist attacks in Britain in as many months, many voters in the town of Corby say security is now their major concern for today’s election – and they see both Prime Minister Theresa May and her Labour challenger as weak.
A once thriving steel town in England’s east midlands, Corby has backed the winning party in every British general election since 1983 and – if Labour is to upset opinion polls which point to victory for May’s Conservatives – this is the kind of parliamentary seat it needs to take.
The town overwhelmingly backed leaving the European Union in last year’s referendum, following a campaign in which immigration became a central issue.
While Brexit negotiations have yet to even begin, a number of Corby residents said national security had become their main worry since the militant attacks in London and Manchester – and some still link it to the immigration question.
Voters were unimpressed with Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn, a veteran anti-war campaigner whom the Conservatives have tried to paint as soft on fighting terrorism.
Corbyn has invited supporters of Palestine’s Hamas to parliament, and advocated dialogue with Irish republicans who fought British forces in Northern Ireland until the late 1990s, although he says he condemns political violence by all sides.
However, Corby residents have little time for May either, even though the Conservatives have traditionally portrayed themselves as the party of law and order.
Claire Soltzed, 61, who owns a boutique in the town’s shopping mall, said: “I am voting Conservative because I would never vote for Jeremy Corbyn, but May is also very weak on terrorism and is an indecisive leader without principles.
“In no way am I a May supporter, but she is the lesser of two evils.”
The Corby constituency has been hotly contested by the two main parties, changing hands five times since 1983.
In 2015, the Conservatives won it by 2 412 votes and Labour has made it a top target this time round.