Labour designates three Shropshire seats as ‘non-battleground’ in General Election

In a recent communication to its members, the Labour Party has designated three Shropshire constituencies as ‘non-battleground’ seats ahead of the General Election.

This means that the party is unlikely to target these seats or spend any time or resources campaigning in them, leaving the field open to other contenders.

North Shropshire – held by Liberal Democrat MP Helen Morgan – is the first of these seats seen as unwinnable to Labour. The same is the case in South Shropshire, where the Liberal Democrats now have as many councillors as the Conservatives and held the seat as recently as 2005.

The Wrekin has also been written off as an unwinnable ‘non-battleground’ seat by Labour.

Helen Morgan, Liberal Democrat MP for North Shropshire, said, “In rural counties like Shropshire, it’s the Liberal Democrats providing the opposition to the Conservatives.

“At the 2021 by-election, thousands of people who normally supported Labour or the Greens switched to the Liberal Democrats. The General Election will be another close two-horse race where every vote will count.

“Today’s announcement by Labour shows that they know they can’t win in North Shropshire or in our county’s other rural constituencies like South Shropshire.”

Chris Naylor, Liberal Democrat candidate for South Shropshire, said, “With our local health services at breaking point, local rivers being destroyed by sewage and hardly any local crimes being solved, people in South Shropshire are telling me it's time for change.

“Even Labour have now admitted they cannot win here. The Liberal Democrats are on a winning streak locally trebling their support from voters in Alveley and Claverley, Highley, and Worfield – in fact, we now have as many councillors as the Conservatives in the south.

“I want to follow the lead of Helen Morgan and show voters here they don’t need to be taken for granted anymore – Labour’s decision to not fight our seat seriously proves that it’ll be the Lib Dems or the Conservatives in South Shropshire next time.”