Runcorn helsby bi election - who to vote for to keep reform out

[Millimat]

So I’m completely uninterested in politics ( don’t shout at me, I’m being honest).
However, I appreciate that this is a major election in our area and even if you’re not from round here, you probably heard about Mike amesbury being jailed for punching someone.
Polls suggest reform could win. I really don’t want that. I’d probably vote green or Lib Dem, but is that a wasted vote? Do I need to vote tactically to keep reform out by voting for Labour?
Id appreciate input. Please don’t tell me to vote reform because that definitely won’t happen. I respect your views so please respect mine.

By election! A bi election sounds like something quite different.

I’ve had a quick look and Labour won comfortably last year (22,500 votes, second place was 7,500). Given that second place was reform, and Lib Dem and Greens got fewer than 3,000 votes each, I doubt that either of them are likely to keep reform out. I’d imagine that Labour and reform will come first and second (not necessarily in that order if you’re saying polls suggest a reform win), so I’d vote Labour to keep reform out.

If people honestly think that reform will offer anything better than Labour then they will be in for a shock.

Labour might not be perfect but they are doing a lot of good work and that includes removing some of the barriers with Europe. Britain needs to be back in Europe or at least have closer ties....there's only one party capable of delivering that. Farage is the architect of Brexit which has damaged the UK and he won't accept responsibility for this.

Next will be government services in reform backed areas, there will be cuts and many of them will impact those who voted for them. So advice to anyone thinking of voting for Reform asked yourself some simple questions and what you value and compare that to the manifesto of Reform.... because if you've enjoyed a paid holiday over the Easter period and taken your children or grandchildren to some of the amazing museums and cultural exhibits this country has to offer then you might be in for a shock. Farage wants to reform of your workers rights and in America workers aren't entitled to holidays and if your lucky you'll get a week or two

I'm amazed that British people keep voting against there own interests and pay attention to headlines rather than reality. It doesn't take a lot to make the average worker worse off and things like paid holidays are taken for granted. Farage might portray himself as some working class Messiah but it's all a lie....he represents people like a diamond mine owner and greasy interest from across the pond.

This is what I wanted to know and what I was thinking. Thank you.

https://stopreformuk.vote/?link_id=5&can_id=183543dff66ab53694aa01fe13a4fa6c&source=email-nigel-farage-doesnt-want-you-to-open-this-email-3&email_referrer=email_2713387___subject_3215855&email_subject=nigel-farage-doesnt-want-you-to-open-this-email&&

You can find out how best to vote tactically in your area with this tactical voting tool. Not all areas have data but hopefully yours does.

why is it if you are not interested in politics that you want to keep reform out?

Who says I am not interested in politics, @User46576?

I think their policy ideas are unethical, immoral and unworkable, as well as being tissue-thin. Plus, their leadership is the worst kind of lying grifter who doesn't even do the basics for the constituents who voted him in.

Oh apologies, @User46576 you were replying to the OP.

I don’t live in your constituency but I campaigned for Labour there in 2019 because I supported the party under Jeremy Corbyn. I’ve since left Labour, totally disgusted with its move to the right. But Reform, though…. I don’t know.

From my experience of the aggressively proBrexit sentiment I encountered there in 2019, I imagine Reform will walk it. But I couldn’t vote for the current Labour Party. I’d vote Green, I think. It’s a wasted vote in the sense the greens won’t win, but it would send a message to the Labour Party about my view on their direction of travel.

I am in this constituency too @Millimatand really worried about the prospect of Reform winning.
There are tactical voting websites you can access which show only Labour can beat Reform for us so unfortunately Green which would be my usual choice or Independent as he seems like a great guy would be a wasted vote.
Get a tactical poster up and start talking to friends and family about their options.

We are farmers so obviously pretty pissed off with Labour but put these signs up to hopefully sway a few people.

Exactly, for farmers a reform government would be a nightmare because of the threat of imported sub standard food from America.

British farmers are some of the best in the world and need support and cheap factory farmed pork and chicken is not what we need

Farming family here as well, hence the need to keep reform out!

Gosh @Millimatdo I know you?
We are in Alvanley.

I see the Timpson family from Manley have stepped up with a pro Labour message on line yesterday which is encouraging.

I think Reform will win because 2 recent polls both put Reform well ahead of Labour who's massive lead had completely vanished due to their recent unpopular policies including taking away the WFA from pensioners, attacking the disabled with likely PIP and LCWRA cuts, attacking farmers with inheritance taxes, they've also pissed off the WASPI women too. People are also alarmed at spending up to £52k a year on most illegal immigrants too in putting them up in 4* hotels. 10,000 so far in 2025 alone and up 50 percent on this time last year.

What exactly is Labour doing well at with illegal immigration?

https://www.gov.uk/government/news/prime-minister-announces-massive-surge-in-immigration-enforcement-as-returns-reach-24000-since-the-election

headlines from the link for those who don't want to click it

• More than 24,000 people with no right to be here returned since July (March 2025 figures)

• Highest rate of returns in eight years

• 21% increase enforced returns as government begins to restore order to immigration system under the Plan for Change

Plus making legislative changes around people trafficking to make it less easy for the bastards exploiting the vulnerable and desperate.

When I was younger an older person in the family told me that there are sometimes elections when you don't very much want to vote FOR any of them, in which case vote to keep someone out. Vote. There are times when you just have to put a cross and see what happens.
I am not in your area but we have a candidate who wasn't Reform before, but now is, so I shall be interested to see what happens here.

You'll regret a reform vote for years to come. You are destroying the future for the next generation. Brexit was a slash and burn for young people, it's taken away so many of their choices. The labour government are working hard to restore some of the freedom that we lost, like getting an agreement that under 30s are able to live and work in Europe. Trying to remove some of the barriers to trade without reversing Brexit, it's not been easy but you cant rebuild trust with what Farage has planned. What he will do is surrender to Trump and alienate our closest allies in Europe.

Why align with Trump who has at best 5 years and plunging popularity. We need to build a future with liberal democracies in Europe and Canada. You will never succeed is if all you do is build walls rather than bridges

The idea that Farage will send them back to France is a farce because it would destroy cross channel traffic in weeks as it would cause a diplomatic crisis. Boris tried it and his own border force refused to comply and we ended up with huge problems at Calais. People need to understand that border control with France is an agreement that goes back decades and most of it is done on French soil.

Just because you had an agreement with France for a long time, doesn't really hold any weight. They have taken the absolute with Britain and it needs to stop.

Europe and incompetent MPs are to blame for Brexit. Europe wanted more and more control over Britian.

I can’t believe that result

such a tight result

Well done Reform!

Europe had zero control over the UK, what you are talking about is deregulation. Farage wants deregulation because it increases profits for businesses. The problem is you can't be part of a single market if you undermine it by deregulating yours at the expense of other members.

Now Britain has poor trade arrangements with zero bargaining power because our economy is tiny. So countries like Spain, Italy which have smaller economies now get better trade deals as part of the EU. Why do you think that the hard right Italian government has stayed in the EU

The agreement with France means that many checks are done in France not here in the UK. What you are talking about is illegal crossings and Farages plan to return them to France would by default turn the UK into people trafficking because the right way to do it would be to return them to the country of nationality and this can be done by processing them as per the law and it's exactly what Labour have been doing.

People simply don't understand the problem they just read the headlines and Farage will take your vote and do very little to curb crossings but will relentlessly chip away at your rights as a British citizen and he will start with your holiday, sick pay, consumer rights....it will be a hay day for those with money looking to exploit the new wild west