NOVANEWS
SMITH TOPPLED – BUT GISELA CLINGS ON
06-05-2010
Redditch MP and former Home Secretary Jacqui Smith was the highest profile casualty of last night’s cull of Labour MPs – but her party colleague Gisela Stuart defied the odds by holding on to her Edgbaston seat in the face of a Tory onslaught.
Smith’s defeat at the hands of Conservative Karen Lumby wasn’t entirely unexpected – but few predicted that she would be thrashed by more than 6,000 votes.
With Labour losing almost 100 seats, Stuart’s victory over Deirdre Alden must rank as one of the performances of the night.
Elsewhere in Birmingham, the Tories ran Labour close in Northfield (where Richard Burden prevailed against Keely Huxtable) and – surprisingly – Erdington where Robert Alden completed a losing family double despite running new boy Jack Dromey close.
The Liberal Democrats replicated their national disappointments by failing to capture two target seat from Labour.
In Ladywood, Shabana Mahmood finally laid to rest any question marks about the legitimacy of her selection by despatching Ayoub Khan with a majority significantly larger than Clare Short achieved last time out; while in Hall Green Jerry Evans along with Dis–Respect’s Salma Yaqoob lost out to Roger Godsiff, in what was possibly the dirtiest campaign in the country.
The Conservatives enjoyed a successful night in the Black Country, James Morris taking Rowley Regis and Halesown from Labour first timer Sue Hayman; and Margot James ousted Lynda Waltho in Stourbridge.
Labour’s Rob Marris also lost narrowly to Paul Uppal in Wolverhampton South West, and in Dudley South red again lost to blue when Rachel Harris was defeated by Chris Kelly Jr.
West Midlands Minister Ian Austin faces a recount in Dudley North.
