It’s South Swindon or nothing – MP hopeful

“IF I was ever to go back to parliament it was Swindon or nothing. South Swindon or nothing, actually.”

Former shadow Health Secretary and still-serving deputy Mayor of London Heidi Alexander is serious about her attempt to win Robert Buckland’s South Swindon constituency at the next election.

She has only just been adopted by the constituency party as its candidate but she has been spending most of her time in the town where she was born and grew up.

She said: “I’ve been camping out in my parents’ house for a few months but I’m very excited because we’ve just had an offer on a house in Old Town accepted.”

Ms Alexander, 47, who was MP for Lewisham East in south-east London for eight years until giving up the job in 2018 to become one of London Mayor Sadiq Khan’s deputies, said the coronavirus pandemic and lockdowns played a major role in making her want to come back to Swindon.

She said: “It makes you reassess – and when you can’t see your family for months, you realise what’s really important.

“I’ve always been proud of being from Swindon. When I was in Lewisham I’d be asked whether I supported Millwall or Charlton and I’d always say Swindon Town.”

Now, gearing up for what might be a two-and-a-half year ‘phoney war’ before an election is called, Ms Alexander has a five-part pitch to the people of Swindon.

“My first priority is sorting the cost-of-living crisis. If I’m elected as MP for South Swindon it’s quite likely we’d have a Labour government, and that will offer real support to people. I know from knocking on doors on Freshbrook, Park North, Liden, rising costs are having an impact on people across the social spectrum.”

Asked to specify what “real support” looks like, Ms Alexander said: “We’d reduce VAT on energy bills and put a windfall tax on oil and gas producers. We’d use it to give real help to people, especially as we’re likely to see another price hike in the autumn.”

The second plank in Ms Alexander’s platform is jobs and investment.

She said: “We need to attract better-quality jobs. Good jobs bring security to people. The Honda plant closing lost 3,000 high-quality, well-paid skilled jobs and a lot of the jobs coming to the town are in things like the distribution sector; they have zero hours contract and there’s a lot of insecurity.”

She referred to the town’s industrial history when discussing its future: “There’s an opportunity for Swindon. It was at the heart of the growth of the railways, crucial to the industrial revolution.

“We need to be at the heart of the transition to net zero, at the heart of the tech sector. I’d want to work with a Labour council here and a Labour government to bring more investment for better jobs for the future.”

But what if South Swindon elects her, but the council and the Government remain Conservative, and North Swindon again elects Conservative Justin Tomlinson?

She said: “I think I’m respected by Conservatives as a person of integrity and as a pragmatist. I hope whatever the political persuasion, we could all work together for the benefit of Swindon.”

Town centre regeneration and better workforce planning for the NHS are other significant promises.

“It’s something I was talking about when I was shadow health secretary in 2015-16. And we’re seeing the results of that failure now, “she said.

And finally; does the former Churchfields School (now Lawn Manor Academy) pupil think she can win?

“I wouldn’t be uprooting my life, moving back to Swindon permanently, If I didn’t think I could. It’s the only place I’d want to be an MP for, now. I’ve always thought of it as home, and I want to represent its people,” she said.

I’ve always thought of it as home, and I want to represent its people HEIDI ALEXANDER