by cromwell » 23 May 2014, 08:39
UKIP have won 10 seats on Rotherham council, taking 8 from Labour and 2 from the Tories.
At the count the comrades were all standing around looking like they'd lost £20 and found 5p.
It's been coming. When you walk into an ex-mining village and see UKIP posters in the window, as I did last week, you realise that it isn't only the Tories who UKIP will take votes from.
Labour are overdue a good kicking round here. Nationally all their recent MP's are posh boys and girls parachuted in above the heads of local candidates; they are recruited from the same social strata as the Conservatives; they are no different.
Locally the quality of Labour councillors is absolutely, honestly dire. The loyalty of Labour voters has just been taken for granted for years.
Plus, immigration.
The more loyal a Labour area you are, the more immigrants you get bussed to your city. Sheffield has had Somalis. Yemenis, Sudanese, Roma as well as half of eastern europe. I think maybe people are cottoning on to that now; and UKIP are the only ones saying, no, this is wrong.
So of course they will get votes.
"Facts do not cease to exist because they are ignored" - Aldous Huxley