LABOUR’s former parliamentary candiate for the city has welcomed the appointment of Sir Keir Starmer as the party’s new leader and backed his efforts to hold the Government to account
Coun Lynn Denham spoke after the former Shadow Brexit Secretary defeated Lisa Nandy and Rebecca Long-Bailey in a ballot of party members and other supporters.
The former lawyer, who only became an MP in 2015, won on the first round of voting with 56.2 per cent of the vote ahead of Mrs Long-Bailey and Ms Nandy while former Shadow Education Secretary Angela Rayner won the contest to become the party’s deputy leader.
Worcester Labour Party members backed both Sir Keir and Mrs Rayner in the nomination process earlier this year and speaking to the Observer, Coun Denham said she was delighted with the result.
“I’m thrilled to welcome Sir Keir Starmer, congratulations to him and to Angela Rayner. They were both the nominees of local members at our meeting so it’s a great result,” she said.
“We look forward to them leading the party into the future and I think now we have seen all the shadow cabinet appointments it is looking like a really strong team to hold this Government to account.”
“Within the shadow cabinet there is a good balance in both gender, geography and also in experience with some ‘older-hands’ together with new faces,” Coun Denham.
The Cathedral councillor highlighted the appointment of women to three of the top jobs below leader with Mrs Rayner also appointed as party chairman while Anneliese Jane Dodds and Ms Nandy will serve as Shadow Chancellor and Shadow Foreign Secretary.
Mrs Dodds is the first female Shadow Chancellor and Coun Denham said: “I think all three appointments are welcome, Anneliese will make an excellent Shadow Chancellor as she certainly knows her stuff.”
A visit from Sir Keir was the first event for Coun Denham after she was named the party’s candidate in November 2018. After an earlier proposed visit and dinner was cancelled at short notice, Coun Denham revealed the party’s new leader ensured he’d still fulfil his date in the city.
As a result, the pair met at Worcester Bosch in January last year for a visit before a fund-raising dinner later that evening attended by party members.
“He was just an incredibly nice man,” Coun Denham said.
“There is no ‘side’ to him at all, he came up on the train, attended the visit and dinner and stayed in a hotel overnight.
“The following morning I picked him up and dropped him off at the station, we just talked about everyday things. Just a really pleasant man.”
