Anna Turley: Former MP seeks re-election and predicts "nasty campaign" from Tories

Before first being elected to represent Redcar in 2015, she was accused of being “parachuted in” by the Labour Party. However, since losing her seat, Turley has remained active in the community that has become her home.

She tells The Yorkshire Post of what she’s been up to since being unseated in 2019: “During COVID I worked for the Redcar foodbanks, running the hotline and co-ordinating the deliveries as the warehouses were shut. I'm also Chair of the North East Child Poverty Commission, highlighting the appalling rise in child poverty across our area and the impact on our children's opportunities and life chances.”

Though it’s not all been hard work, “I've enjoyed having more time to spend walking my dog on the beach and enjoying all our area has to offer!” she laughs.

In an article announcing his intention to stand again, Young writes of his pride in being the first born and bred Teessider to be elected for Redcar. Turley - who was raised in Kent - puts aside any concern that she doesn’t understand the area.

“I don't think people cared where Mo Mowlam was from because she did an amazing job and they felt she was one of them,” she says of Redcar’s MP between 1987 and 2001.

“They want an MP who has their backs and will make their voices heard. Redcar has been my home for over a decade now, and this is where I belong. When I represent people, it's my friends and neighbours and the communities I live amongst here whose voices and stories I raise.”

The battle for Redcar promises to gain national attention in the next election. It’s the very definition of “Red Wall” territory, with Young becoming the first Tory to represent the constituency after his 2019 victory. The constituency also contains the Teesworks freeport site - one of the UK Government’s biggest and most obvious ‘Levelling Up’ projects.

The MP for neighbouring Middlesbrough South and East Cleveland, Sir Simon Clarke has said that a vote for Turley would be “going back to the past”. In response, Turley strikes a bold tone: “I fully expect a nasty, negative campaign from the Tories because they have nothing left to offer people here. Their record will stand for itself.

“No one feels better off than they were 13 years ago, public services are broken, and the Conservatives are in a chaotic, self-serving mess where the interests of the British public are always an afterthought.”

Though she campaigned in favour of staying in the EU - something that may have contributed to her loss in 2019 - she’s angry at how Brexit has been handled by the Conservatives.

“I doubt anyone can say that what the Tories have delivered is what people voted for. But we are out now, and we all have a responsibility to make Brexit work in the interests of people here. My concern was always about the impact on the economy of Teesside and the cost of living for people - they are the issues that urgently need fixing.”

She mentions that “The mood on the doorsteps has changed substantially over the last three years” since her last campaign.

“Labour locally and nationally has changed and we are listening and rebuilding trust. People are keen to see what Labour has to offer them. We have a job to do, and I can't wait to get campaigning for change and for a better, brighter future for the people of Redcar and Cleveland.”