Watching politics unfold isn’t something new for Cumbria, after all, we are hundreds of miles from Westminster Village where most of the key decisions are made.
When we were part of the EU, even our ‘local’ representatives tended to come from Manchester or Liverpool. And today, we have moved from truly local councils to the twin unitary authorities of Westmorland and Furness, and Cumberland, with the spectre of a county-wide mayor from next year whether we like it or not.
So, watching the local elections across England unfold this week was just a spectator sport for the Cumbrians.
As our ex-friends across the Atlantic might say, we had no skin in the game (and you wonder, with such idioms, why we must consider American now a distinct language in its own right!).
Watching the local council results roll out yesterday, it was clear that there was a major shift in the political landscape across England.
No longer do we have a duopoly of Labour on the left and Conservative on the right with the Liberal Democrats and a smattering of Greens somewhere on the spectrum.
Now we have a new kid on the block – Reform.
For Labour and Conservative, we have parties that change their leader on a relatively frequent basis. In Nigel Farage we have a leader who changes his party relatively often.
He began life as a Conservative but fell out with them after they signed the EU Treaty at Maastricht and formed the UK Independence Party.
Campaigning mainly on an anti-European Union ticket, post-Brexit, he left UKIP for ideological reasons before aligning himself and becoming leader of the Brexit Party which was renamed Reform in 2021.
While Reform and the Conservative Party share many of the same ideals what Nigel Farage is adept at is reading the room. He has listened very carefully at what disaffected members of the public have said and formed these ideas into the underlying policies of the party.
Now there are two schools of thought. The traditional one that the public should be offered a choice of policies: This is what Labour stands for, this is what the Conservatives stand for, this is what the Lib Dems stands for, etc. Manifestos set before an electorate.
What Farage and Reform have done is not offered policies to the electorate but allowed the electorate to dictate what those policies should be.
This, therefore, empowers the public who then feel they are listened to and that they have a role to play in the political life of the country.
It doesn’t really matter what those policies are as many are shared with other parties, in Reform’s case, particularly with the Conservatives.
Anti-immigration is one long-standing issue that captures votes from across the political spectrum and, more recently, increasing spending on public services, reforming the NHS, recruiting 40,000 more police officers and bringing water/electricity/gas back under partial public ownership.
And all while lowering taxes which does suggest lots of juggling if not straight off magic!
And by offering these ideas alongside more local initiatives (eg better transport infrastructure for the North, Midlands and Wales) Reform under a charismatic leader, becomes an attractive alternative to the established parties, in particular, the Conservatives especially when the figures this week show Reform gained 677 councillors while the Conservatives lost 676 – coincidence?
So, can we extrapolate these results to Cumbria?
Perhaps, for Cumbria, the strong showing by the Liberal Democrats, especially for Westmorland and Furness, might be a factor for the next round of council elections and the mayoral race next year.
Of course, with the mayoral election the candidate chosen from each party will be important, but as the election will take place against a backdrop of national coverage, the party aspect may override this.
As for the next round of council elections, unless, nationally, Labour can reverse their electoral decline, there must be some doubt as to their ability to retain Cumberland or have a strong, second place showing in Westmorland and Furness.
The latter might be cemented as a Liberal Democrat stronghold while this party, on this week’s showing, could make major inroads into Labour support in Cumbria.
The dark horse has to be Reform who would be expected, again on this week’s showing, to decimate the Conservative vote but also pick up many disaffected Labour voters in the north and west of the county.
While Cumbrians won’t be sitting in the stands watching next year, how the political landscape continues to evolve over the next 12 months will be fascinating to watch ahead of us casting votes in May 2026.
About Cumbria Cat
Born in Cumberland and, now, back living in Cumberland, having spent most of the past 50 years in some place called Cumbria, this cat has used up all nine lives as well as a few others.
Always happy to curl up on a friendly lap, the preference is for a local lap and not a lap that wants to descend on the county to change it into something it isn’t.
After all, you might think Cumbria/Cumberland/Westmorland is a land forged by nature – the glaciers, the rivers, breaking down the volcanic rocks or the sedimentary layers – but, in reality, the Cumbria we know today was forged by generations of local people, farmers, miners, quarriers, and foresters.
This cat is a local moggy, not a Burmese, Ocicat or Persian, and although I have been around the block a few times, whenever I jump, I end up on my feet back in my home county.
I am passionate about the area, its people, past, present and future, and those who come to admire what we hold dear, be it lakes and mountains, wild sea shores, vibrant communities or the history as rich and diverse as anywhere in the world.
