Where are all of the Labour voters in real life?!

[PBEEBIES]

I grew up on a council estate. I would say the majority of the people here were very “I’m happy for people to come to this country, but those who come over and don’t work/don’t assimilate are unwelcome” as their main political belief. Despite being a poor area with the majority of people on some form of benefit, they believed that people who work shouldn’t have to pay super high levels of tax and people should be able to keep what they earn etc.

I went to university and associated with “posher” people for the first time. I would say the political beliefs held by these people were very similar to those held by the people I grew up around. I met a few people that were stronger to the left and right here, but to generalise, the majority were all pretty middle of the road/right leaning in the same way that they were on my council estate.

I now have a well paid professional job and live in quite a “posh” area. The people here again, generally hold the same views as everybody at my university and the council estate I grew up on. Probably slightly more right leaning, but all pretty similar on their thoughts on immigration, taxation, government spending priorities etc. We’ve recently completed a house renovation and if ever the topic of politics came up with the tradesmen we were using (eg. If the news was on when we were in the same room), the general consensus was still the same. I have also noticed that 99% of people I have spoken to all seem to be anti Covid vaccine/think that there was some kind of government conspiracy with hiding the negative effects of the vaccine - this is ranging from the drs I know, to the tradesmen, shop assistants, students etc (not just a small section of society).

I’m suprised that considering I’ve lived in multiple cities in both rich and poor areas, socialised with and have friends in professional careers as well as tradesmen, students, across all ages… most people I encounter seem to all hold the same political views.

I have genuinely only ever met a few truly left wing people in my life, in real life. For example, I’ve never met anyone in real life who has stood up and said “I think that we should take asylum seekers as they’re at risk in their own countries” even though this isn’t extreme! I’ve never met anyone who has said “I think that our taxes should be raised so that we can improve public services”, or “I think it’s really important that we spend on making our country more energy efficient as this is important for eradicating climate change”. How is this possible?! Everyone I’ve ever discussed politics with across a wide range of social classes , careers, ages, locations has always been centre/right.

Please don’t focus on the fact that I’ve used immigration as an example throughout this, it was just one of the stronger examples that I can think of! Another example would be the trans issue - I’ve never met anyone who thinks anything other than “trans people are free to do whatever they like, but sex is a biological fact that you cannot change”.

My next door neighbour is an NHS consultant and definitely a Tory counsellor. DD2’s orthodontist who is also an NHS professor is also definitely a Tory. In state education, the teachers and TAs generally more Labour, but the heads and the CEOs of academy chains, I reckon more likely Tory.

Most people I know are centre left for some things & centre right for others so they switch between labour & Tory at the voting booth.

I’m a labour voter and always have been (apart from one tactical Lib Dem vote many years ago).
No, I don’t agree with absolutely everything they say or do but I do believe that they make decisions with more good intention than the other parties.
I couldn’t consider voting Green now and think that the most important thing at the next election is to keep out the far right.

I live in the North West. I and nearly everyone I know are labour voters. I am very happy to be defined as a socialist - currently benefiting from those beliefs in my NHS hospital bed. I could and would never, ever vote Tory. I would spoil my ballot first.

In my experience, as a member of the education sector with many friends in senior management, you are wrong about heads being Tory.

I was a healthcare professional in northampton in covid, I alongside all my Dr colleagues queued up to have the vaccine especially after our colleagues started to be affected- some died. I don’t know of one of my friends at work who would say that about the vaccine - covid was horrific for some of us. I am also a labour voter, my parents were wealthy/ family money people, lifelong tory voters!!

The people I socialise with are a mixed group of voters, in my family my DD votes reform, my DS green. I think you may find people hide who they really are in polite company and don’t want to have political conversations or deep discussions about covid!!!

After reading the first couple of pages in detail and then skimming the rest, I'm left with a sense of there being something very spurious about OP's post. I don't believe this post is real. Or, at least , not honest.

I'm not totally sure I understand what you are saying here.

I was saying be that many doctors see new drugs come out every year, and the problems that emerge from new drugs regularly too.

Some no doubt are too dumb to see the pattern but most understand the connection

This can’t be real. I know one person who was openly anti Covid vaccine and everyone thinks he’s nuts!

My social circles view on the ‘hot topic’ of immigration is that we cannot comprehend how anyone actually believes that such a tiny amount of people eg asylum seekers are affecting our society. We are fed up of the disproportionate media coverage. I honestly don’t know anyone who thinks it’s a real issue. I guess we’re all different in our perspectives.

“Loony lefty libtard” here, reporting live from my South Yorkshire Labour constituency. 🙋🏼‍♀️

So people who are at the front line and can see the damage done by the tories?

I live in the North West and most people I know support labour. I have crossed paths with a few reform voters but not many. Not sure I've ever met a Tory voter in Liverpool in real life 😂

Most developed countries have free at the point of use health care (obvs not USA).

It's absolutely only inevitable if policy and funding make it so.

Sorry, but I think you’re wrong, or at least only seeing and hearing what you want to hear. I’m a proud socialist, left-wing Irish woman who has worked for the NHS for over 30 years.
Until you’ve actually worked through COVID, both pre- and post-vaccine, I don’t think you can fully appreciate what we witnessed. People were dying and developing serious, including autoimmune, conditions long before the vaccines were even rolled out.
I’m sorry, but I honestly think you’re talking utter rubbish.

Im a labour voter!

I think we need higher taxes, especially on higher earners like me but to be honest, across the board, to fund massive public investment.

Id like the government to build a lot of council homes & run public transport, water & utilities not for profit

Im not into gender ideology though. Absent tiny number of people genuinely intersex, most people are born male (xy) or female (xx) and stay that way.

On immigration i think we need to consider the impact unskilled migration in particular has on the existing populations.

I totally support nhs free at point of use & publicly owned & run.

They're all on here OP.

I think there are general populist views that governments cannot act on (or won’t).

People can be centre right but believe we should pay more in taxes for public services ie NHS.

I work for the government but would never vote Labour, in fact we have done better under the Conservatives imo.

Most of my friends / colleagues who I am friendly with (most colleagues will be earning well into 6 figures) are socially liberal, pro immigration and think the public services should be better funded. Not necessarily Labour supporters though. Some despair of Labour’s move away from its roots. Others support the greens or tend to vote tactically to keep the parties they disagree with most strongly out.

Your beyond help with all thats being going on with labour and the taxes and leaning towards Green- good grief. Best if your give your head a wobble

maybe some wider reading is the way to go for you there's lots of it on Twitter

And therein lie a lot of the problems we are facing, from the hotel protesters to the anti-vaxxers. All swallowing the poison seeping from Musk's plaything.

Exactly not a true representation of what alot of people think. Definately her narrow circle of friends. Hasnt even responded probably cos the thread is getting longer

The thread had largely turned to political debate which I didn’t want.

This thread kind of proves my point (to me!). Most of the replies are saying how left wing they and their social circles are, but I don’t ever seem to encounter these people in real life!

For those saying that I must be a Covid conspiracy theorist etc. - not at all! I have a health condition that some believe could be linked to the jab. And therefore, the conversation turns to this occasionally when my condition is mentioned. Probably why I’m still having Covid related conversations with people that I’m not overly familiar with (as my condition is something that could be discussed without being personal).

I’m not lying about the NHS workers I encounter. My sister is a midwife. Our mum is a recently retired nurse. My DH is a cardiologist. His best friend is an ENT registrar. His wife is a GP. I have a friend who is a paramedic. I’ve also socialised with their friends and colleagues. The majority of these people are right leaning politics wise (I can only think of one that was clearly left wing!). Even if politics aren’t explicitly discussed, I can tell by their comments and thoughts on general news and conversation topics.

But surely that says more about your social circle than NHS staff in general?

You're talking about your own family and your close friends/their friends. In other words, people who share similar values to you. I know lots of people who work in the NHS who have very different values from yours, but they are unlikely to be socialising with people like you because their values and yours clearly don't align. It isn't rocket science!

True.