Labour admits it was ‘too detached’ from rural voters

Labour was “too detached” from rural voters over the last two decades, the shadow environment secretary is expected to admit.

Steve Reed is expected to tell farmers and landowners on Thursday that Labour now has a “respectful attitude” towards rural communities under Sir Keir Starmer compared to the recent past.

The Labour MP for Croydon North will say that after Labour won the majority of rural seats in Parliament in 1997 and 2001, the party “became too detached from the aspirations and concerns of our rural communities”.

The shadow environment secretary will hope to win over the rural vote by promising access to cheaper clean energy, fewer food imports and a veterinary agreement with the EU during his address to the Country Land and Business Association (CLA) conference in central London.

It comes as part of a broader push by the party to reassure rural voters with long-held support for the Conservative Party, and put distance between the current opposition and Labour under Jeremy Corbyn.

He will tell over 600 rural businesses and landowners: “Under Keir Starmer’s leadership, Labour now has a respectful attitude towards our rural communities.

“And that means people from urban areas – like me – not telling people who live and work in the countryside how they should live their lives.”

Labour surge in rural poll

He is expected to pledge “the biggest ever transfer of power from Westminster to the British people in all parts of the country”, adding that Labour wants “rural communities to control their own futures”.

Recent polling by the CLA of over 1,000 people in England’s 100 most rural constituencies showed an 18 per cent fall in Conservative support and a Labour surge of 16 per cent.

The Tories and Labour would be almost neck and neck in their race to win over rural voters for the next general election.

Steve Barclay, who took over as Environment Secretary from Therese Coffey earlier this month, will also address the conference.

Mr Reed is also expected to promise that the party will “slash” the wait for planning decisions regarding renewable energy projects “from years to months”.

“To get that energy to where it’s needed, Labour will rewire Britain – and get the National Grid moving faster.

“Under the Conservatives, farmers and landowners have been left waiting years to plug their renewable energy into the grid,” he will say.

‘Labour will damage rural areas’

The Croydon North MP will reaffirm Labour’s ambitions to seek a veterinary agreement with the EU and to “cut the red tape and costs at our borders” for food imports and exports.

Sir Keir wrote for Country Life magazine in September in an attempt to win over traditionally Tory rural communities, becoming the first Labour leader to do so.

He pledged “a new deal for British farming”, which included “ambition” towards developing a bovine tuberculosis vaccine.

Mr Barclay said in response to his Labour counterpart’s remarks: “Labour can’t claim they’re going to empower rural communities, while simultaneously promising to ignore their concerns and concrete over their green belt to make space for urban sprawl.

“Labour’s plans would damage rural areas. Only the Conservatives are taking the long-term decisions needed to secure a brighter future for our British countryside.”