Category Archives: Election

Thank you

Over 3000 of you voted for me and thank you to you all. And to all on the local Lib Dem team: Steve, Billy, Roger, Nina, Granville, Chris, Bob and our Lib Dem councillors Paul, Rob, Dave and Carol.

And of course my long-suffering wife Jane.

Congratulations to David and commiserations to Anna and my fellow candidates Peter, Tilly, James, Tom, Lara and Jason. I got to talk to you all and you’re all lovely people!

I continue to be a local community champion despite no winning the seat this time. I’m still a Liberal Democrat and will stand up for our values as best I can. I’m going to focus on our community with learning difficulties and the food banks first as that’s where I see the most need.

I’ll help our new MP David however best I can. Him and his party have the power now to change how the water companies act, how our NHS and its patients are treated and funding for our local council and all the services it provides. I’ve also offered Bayo our MP in Southend East all the help I can. It is one community not separated really by political lines. We’re a coalition on the council too.

The Liberal Democrats have become a large block in parliament again and we’ve a responsibility to prove we deserve to be there. I’ll work with the national party and our MPs on what we are pushing for there. Such as our emergency funding for the NHS bill. Victoria Collins, who’s a new LibDem MP in Harpenden and Berkhamsted, will hit the ground running. She’s holding Thames Water to account for what they’re doing. Their sewage dumping flows down to us as well as what Anglian Water is doing.

Change is in the air and I’ll do my bit to help bring it about.

Hustings Southend West & Leigh

A fantastic set of questions, very deep and straight to the point on what matters to people in this election.

If anyone wants more clarity on what I said, email me at stephen@stephencummins.org.uk

I think the best answer came from Tilly responding the Anna on the topic of food banks. You can see it in the video above at 32:23.

A huge thank you to Leigh Road Baptist Church along with the Churches Together in Leigh-on-Sea group for hosting these hustings last night, 24th June 2024

Leaflet to the voters in Southend West & Leigh

Dropping leaflets through a letter box rather than an inbox is still an important part of the democratic process. This is what I’m sending the people in my constituency to convey what I want to do on theri behalf.

Stakeboards not skateboards

Like the poster? We have also the diamond shaped ones for windows and even stakeboards (not skateboards!) Let me know if you’d like some delivered to put up at your home, I’ll even drop them over myself!

How are you going to pay for it?

This is the main question asked of any change in goverment policy and rightly so. It is our money as a society that is being spent after all. So here are the main ways we the Liberal Democrats will pay for what they plan to do to make the UK a better place to live for everyone.

Our manifesto will to fund investments in the NHS, social care, childcare, and the environment through a major tax increase on the wealthy. Launched by Sir Ed Davey today (10th of June 2024), it includes higher capital gains tax, levies on frequent flyers and private jet users, and increased taxes on banks, digital services, oil companies, tobacco companies, and polluting water companies. Together, these aim to raise £26.8bn.

We also propose a 4% tax on share buybacks and reversing bank tax breaks to raise additional funds of approx. £1.4bn. We want to reinstate maintenance grants for disadvantaged university students immediately and improve social care provision.

But won’t the billionaires (like Rishi Sunak) just find loopholes or move their money further offshore? It is expected that 30 per cent of theoretical extra revenues might be lost through this “behavioural change” as wealthy individuals tried to avoid the new rates, but that this was factored into these revenue calculations.

To quote Sir Ed: “Most people will pay the same or less. If you are very, very wealthy — 0.1 per cent of the population — you will pay a lot more tax. Multimillionaires and billionaires will pay a lot more.”

Sounds like a fair deal to me.

National Service plan

National Service recruits in the RAF. Imperial War Museum / Non Commercial License Even the men who served don’t think we should bring it back.

The Liberal Democrats have warned that the Conservative Party’s plans to spend £2.5 billion on National Service would lead to cuts to vital services in Southend.

The Conservatives have said their plans would be paid for by slashing funding for local areas through the Shared Prosperity Fund from 2028-29, which funds projects that boost jobs and living standards, improve public services and build pride in local communities.

This fund has provided £1,338,755 of funding for Southend from 2022 to 2025. Thirteen local projects have been funded, but details have not been published by the council yet.

The Liberal Democrats said it showed the Conservative Party had completely the wrong priorities, and called on the government to reverse their plans to slashed troop numbers by 10,000 instead.

The Conservative Party has already done so much damage to people’s living standards and public services in Southend with all their chaos. Now they want to slash funding for local services to pay for their hare-brained plans for a National Service, which are nothing but a desperate distraction from the government’s record of failure on the NHS and economy.

If the Conservatives were serious about defending Britain’s security, they would reverse their plans to cut the Army by 10,000 troops.

General Election called

The power finally returns to the people. The 4th of July will come fast. It is an opportunity to change from the Conservative Party in Southend West and Leigh. Maybe it seems like we’ve always had a Tory MP, even back to the Guinness-on-Sea days. Change is gonna come, and good things come to those who wait. Like a good pint of Guinness.

Vote now for things actually getting better. Our future is back in our control.

Who is Stephen?

I’m delighted to introduce myself as your Liberal Democrat candidate for Southend West & Leigh.

When people hear “Liberal Democrat,” I want them to think of hopeful and positive politics. Our party wants to make a society where everyone can live their best life in a free and fair community. We are a collaborative party and will bring success to Southend and the wider South Essex area by working with other progressive parties. Just like we do on the Southend city council in our coalition with Labour and the Independents.

I was born in England and grew up in Ireland. In a way, I’m a returning immigrant with roots here. I live and work in Southend and have done so for almost 10 years. I came here initially for contract work at Southend Borough Council but fell in love with the Thames estuary, the quality of life here and the friendly people. My daughter attended Eastwood Academy where I served as a governor. I set up a residents’ association where we initially lived on San Remo Parade and started the Southend Dog Friendly Beach campaign. I also ran for the local council in West Leigh. Additionally, I’m studying part-time for a Master of Laws (LLM) in Human Rights and Family Law. I work from my home on Victoria Avenue for an asset management company in the City of London as an Information Architect. For fun, I run a book club and a synthesizer club at Anke’s Tea and Coffee Lounge in Westcliff.

If you’ve seen me around, you’ll know I have a disability. It is called PFFD which means I have short legs and walk on crutches. You’ll see me most days flying along the Chalkwell Esplanade on a skateboard with my three small dogs, Georgie, Gizmo and Tinx. My wife and I’s favourite thing to do is sit at the Saltwater Beach Cafe and chat to our friends and neighbours and pat their dogs. Being disabled hasn’t stopped me from living a full life, but it has given me a greater empathy for others. I understand the struggles we face to live well, protect our loved ones, and show kindness and compassion. We need more equality and fairness in our society, not selfishness and greed. Not everything’s value can be measured in pounds and pence.

It may seem impossible to shift from a Conservative MP in Southend, but the Tories are now unrecognisable compared to the party they were a decade ago. They have failed to protect our beautiful estuary, our local economy, our health service and the safety and security of our families. With a new government in July, my focus as your MP will be to challenge the parliamentary decisions that shape our lives. Voters now have a rare opportunity to choose a fresh start to secure our future in Southend West and Leigh. Trust me with your vote and let’s do this together. To follow my campaign, visit  http://www.stephencummins.org.uk