Local election results
My view and what next?
The Milton Keynes City Council election results in Bletchley and Tattenhoe are clearly difficult for Labour.
As your Member of Parliament, I know I have a personal responsibility to help rebuild confidence in Labour locally. That is a challenge I will confront directly and head-on.
To everyone who voted Labour, I would like to say thank you. I am grateful for the trust you placed in our local Labour candidates. I am delighted that Cllr Ed Hume has been elected to a four year term in the Bletchley South ward.
As the Milton Keynes Labour Party Group navigates the next few weeks of this new City Council, they will have my full support.
I am enormously proud of what twelve years of Labour leadership in Milton Keynes has meant for people in Bletchley and Tattenhoe.
We delivered 200 high-quality homes on the Lakes Estate. We achieved the highest recycling rate of any city in the country. And we kept family centres and libraries open throughout the austerity years – at a time when councils across the country were making devastating cuts to children's services. That is a record to be proud of, and it belongs to everyone who fought for it.
That is why I would especially like to offer my heartfelt thanks to every Labour candidate and volunteer who gave so much of themselves throughout this campaign. They conducted themselves with real integrity and determination, and I have been proud to campaign alongside them.
I’m sorry to lose our hardworking councillors: Waqas Ahmad, Mohammed Khan, Ayesha Khanom, Mandy Legg, Mick Legg, and Nigel Long. I thank each for their service and dedication to our city.
I want to address the many people who cast their vote for either Reform UK or the Greens yesterday. I have heard your voices, and I take them seriously. Our Labour Government has taken positive steps to do better on the things that matter most to you: reducing your cost of living, improving the public services you pay tax for, and delivering a fair immigration system.
But I understand that we must do far more - and articulate a clearer, more positive vision for Britain. I know our country needs to genuinely work for everyone, and I’ve heard loud and clear that change needs to be delivered quicker, and in a way that people can see and feel.
I congratulate all newly elected councillors in Bletchley and Tattenhoe. To the new Reform UK councillors in particular: you now have a real opportunity to show what your vision looks like in practice. I very much hope you represent our whole town and every resident, however they voted. That is the duty of anyone who holds elected office.
Furthermore, it is clear that the Conservatives are no longer a meaningful force in Bletchley and Tattenhoe. The next general election for the Buckingham and Bletchley constituency will be a straight choice between Labour and Reform.
The towns, villages and city that make up our Buckingham and Bletchley constituency are amazing places to live. It is an honour to serve them in Parliament. But I believe our constituency's and Britain’s best days still lie ahead of us.
That’s why I will continue spending every day to earn people’s trust, demonstrating how Labour is delivering for local people, and setting out how families and communities across Bletchley and Tattenhoe can have better tomorrows. That work begins now.
