Dear Undecided Voter

Dear Undecided Voter,

Our next general election takes place in one week, on Thursday 8th June. If you have registered to vote, you’ve probably received your polling card by now and you know where to go. Voting is not hard, complex or scary. It’s made simple for you. You may have voted before, you might not have. I am not going to tell you who you should vote for. It is a personal decision and its important you cast your vote on the things that mean the most to you. If you are thinking of voting opposite me, I will not tell you that you are wrong. We may disagree, and that is fine. But I would like to tell you the reasons why I intend to vote Labour.

You see, I hear all these stories saying to vote tactically if you want the Conservatives out. I hear in my constituency I should vote for the Liberal Democrats. I live in a constituency that has, for all of time, been conservative lead. I live in an affluent area in the South East were the commute to London is easy (and expensive) and where house prices are high. But I can’t vote for a party that I don’t agree with which is why I can not vote for the Conservatives and I can not vote for the Liberal Democrats. Brexit has been voted on, I am not interested in negotiating with the EU and then having another vote to say whether those terms. I was a remain voter, I have accepted the result and feel we need to move forward with it now. If there was another vote, a vote on the terms, I just wouldn’t bother to go.

But I will go to the polling station for our general election because this vote is not about Brexit. It is about who will govern our country for the next five years and no manifesto has ever made me feel so positive about the future. Brexit is, of course, going to be a part of it and I want it to be a Labour lead Brexit because I want to protect our human and workers rights. I do not understand the free tarriff becuase I am not in the manufacturing business but I appreciate this is an issue for some.

I will vote Labour because I know they will protect our NHS.
I will vote Labour because free school meals should not be abolished for infant schools.
I will vote Labour because I believe that nationalised services like rail and energy will save everyone money.
I will vote Labour because my partner has been on minimum wage in his job for five years. He earns £7.50 an hour to support two other people. We do not receive any form of working or child tax credits (more because they are a pain to deal with) and because he deserves to get a living wage rate of pay.
I will vote Labour so my partner can retrain if he needs to so that he can increase his wages without paying massive fees and landing us in even more debt.
I will vote Labour because I feel inspired by Jeremy Corbyn. That may not be a popular opinion but I enjoy hearing him speak and how passionate and caring he comes across.
I will vote Labour because zero hour contracts are an awful thing and should be banned.
I will vote Labour because I think men should be allowed four weeks paternity pay. Two weeks off with your child is not enough time to adjust.
I will vote Labour because I think 6 and 7 year olds are tested unnecessarily and that should be stopped. More pressure does not need to be on our teachers and infant school pupils who still care more about playing than phonetically spelling 40 words.

All of these points, I genuinely believe will be better for everyone.

With this last week left before we vote do your research. Read the manifestos, speak to people, ask why they are voting for who they are voting for. Get those conversations started. Think of the NHS, the strain on nurses and doctors, long waiting times, no beds…think of our Education service, all those school collections and fundraising days. Think of our future and the future you would like your children, grandchildren and great grandchildren to have.

Please vote.