Former Leigh MP Jo Platt has been chosen to represent the town as Labour’s Parliamentary Candidate at the next general election.
Platt, who lost her seat in Leigh back in 2019, won a majority of votes to become Leigh’s Labour candidate once again following a hustings vote on Sunday (July 10). Speaking following Sunday’s vote, Platt said: “It is an honour to be the Labour candidate for Leigh once again. 13 years ago I joined the Labour Party here in Leigh.
“We have a lot to be proud of in Leigh, and a huge amount of strength and resilience in our communities, but the Conservative government with the support of their local MP have failed us.
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“Only Labour had a plan to help people through the cost of living crisis, fix our broken transport system and ensure people feel safe on our streets.”
Platt announced her intentions to run again as a candidate for Leigh last month, vowing that Parliament needed someone connected to the ‘day to day’ matters affecting the community to ‘help tackle them’. She cited homelessness, antisocial behaviour, and drug and alcohol problems as key issues in the area.
Platt ran as Leigh’s MP until 2019, when Tory candidate James Grundy received almost 2,000 more votes than her in a shock change of direction for the town. As a result, Grundy became the first ever Conservative MP in Leigh. The next general election is currently set to take place in 2014.
Since the 2019 election, Platt said she had been continuing to work within the community on the ground as well as getting involved with Leigh Spinners Mill.
A Labour Party spokesperson said: "Jo is an excellent choice to win back Leigh at the next general election, she is a lifelong Labour campaigner and hardworking mum of 3, Jo brings a wealth of experience as the former Member of Parliament and will hit the ground running."
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