The labour party? i was raised in manchester when sir graham stringer was leader of the council. my dad is a labour man. my grandad was a co op milkman. when i sat down ten years ago and read all the manifestos, and felt the conservative party was my natural home. it is a mixture of responsibility with your money. the values on the type of society you want to be in. we are a broad church coalitions in the conservative and labour movement. but ultimately you cannot overturn a democratic vote and say that you want to rejoin the eu. d0 and say that you want to re oin the eu. y ., ~ and say that you want to re oin the eu. , ~ ., and say that you want to re oin the eu. do you like what you have heard from katherine? eu. do you like what you have heard from katherine? no! eu. do you like what you have heard from katherine? no! i eu. do you like what you have heard from katherine? no! i am eu. do you like what you have heard from katherine? no! i am never- eu. do you like what you have heard i from katherine? no! i am never going to en o in: from katherine? no! i am never going to enjoying the from katherine? no! i am never going to enjoying the conservative from katherine? no! i am never going to enjoying the conservative party. . to enjoying the conservative party. to join the conservative party. look at the area, nor the structure, where i did a lot of my growing up. north shropshire. i would where i did a lot of my growing up. north shropshire. iwould be where i did a lot of my growing up. north shropshire. i would be more likely to vote lib dem or green. on
Yeah, well, that is true. rishi is a smart man. let s talk more about politics, i want to talk about where those old habits, where they came from and why you were a labour man and why you went on to be a tory. you talk about being a proud ashfield man, born, brought up, all yourfamily. for people who don t know it, what do you mean by that, what sort of place is it, what are you proud of? ashfield is a coal mining constituency built on coal and textiles. and your dad was a miner? yes, all my family were coalminers. all the male members. they weren t many females worked down the pit, there weren t any. ifollowed my dad into the pits when i left school and i was incredibly proud to do thatjob. and your dad, traditional working class, hard working, i imagine, demanding? labour man, through and through, trade unionist, been on strike 72, 74 and 81i, he s got the badge. he did all that. because he thought it was right what he was doing, to protect hisjob, to protect his community, and then ao odd years later he finds
Debt, over £500 billion of taxpayers money, we ve got to balance the books, and i m pretty sure and i m confident for next year, i think rishi hasjust proved with the northern ireland issue. so, for those people, you will know, plenty of tories who actually said, he s a socialist, rishi sunak, i have interviewed tories who say that, and you were a borisjohnson backer, you wear a liz truss backer, you now think it is not that you have been neutered, it is that those people got rishi sunak wrong? ida. people got rishi sunak wrong? no, there is that people got rishi sunak wrong? iirr, there is that much talent within the labour. within the conservative party, that we have got some really good people and no conservative party. good people and no conservative pa . . , , . good people and no conservative party- that i good people and no conservativel party- that is party. old habits die hard! that is true. party. old habits die hard! that is true- let s party. old habits die hard! that is true. let s talk party. old habits die hard! that is true. let s talk more party. old habits die hard! that is true. let s talk more about - true. let s talk more about politics. true. let s talk more about politics. i true. let s talk more about politics, i want true. let s talk more about politics, i want to - true. let s talk more about politics, i want to talk - true. let s talk more about | politics, i want to talk about true. let s talk more about - politics, i want to talk about why those old habits, where they came from and why you were a labour man and why you went on to be a tory. you talk about being a proud ashfield man, born, brought up, or yourfamily, for people ashfield man, born, brought up, or your family, for people who don t know it, what do you mean by that,
What sort of place is it, what are you proud of? you proud of? ashfield is a coal minin: you proud of? ashfield is a coal mining constituency you proud of? ashfield is a coal mining constituency built - you proud of? ashfield is a coal mining constituency built on . you proud of? ashfield is a coal. mining constituency built on coal mines and textiles, all my family were minors. they won t many females worked down the pit, ifollowed my judge into the pits when i left school and i was incredibly proud to do that job. school and i was incredibly proud to do thatjob. find school and i was incredibly proud to do that job- do that job. and your dad, traditional do that job. and your dad, traditional working-class, | traditional working class, hard working, i imagine, demanding? labour man, through and through, trade unionist, been on strike 72, 74 trade unionist, been on strike 72, 7a and 84, trade unionist, been on strike 72, 74 and 84, he s got the badge. he did all that. because he thought it was right what he was doing, to protect hisjob, to protect was right what he was doing, to protect his job, to protect his community, and then 40 odd years later he finds himself voting for me at a general election. 50. later he finds himself voting for me at a general election. at a general election. so, in your house, at a general election. so, in your house. then. at a general election. so, in your house. then. i at a general election. so, in your house, then, i don t at a general election. so, in your house, then, i don t imagine - at a general election. so, in your. house, then, i don t imagine there is a lot of debate about politics, presumably politics went labour, and the union? it presumably politics went labour, and the union? :: , the union? it did, in the 70s, rurowin the union? it did, in the 70s, growing up. the union? it did, in the 70s, growing up. and the union? it did, in the 70s, growing up, and i the union? it did, in the 70s, growing up, and i tell- the union? it did, in the 70s, growing up, and i tell this - the union? it did, in the 70s, i growing up, and i tell this story often, it wasn t scargill, skinner, tony benn, that was what we listened
Are you having any of those conversations with labour? could it ever happen? no. look, i mean, in oxford, i fight labour. there is no love . lost at local level. some voters like the idea, though, don t they, of you teaming up to get rid of the tories, even may be behind the scenes. look, if i was going to be labour, i d have been labour. my dad was a labour man through and through. - i looked at the policies i of all the different parties when i decided to become an mp and i decided that the liberal- democrats and their approach, internationalist but also caring | about localism and that sort of devolved type of power, i that was for me, and we aren t about to do a pact with them, i because we want to positively put |forward the liberal democrat wayj to deal with taxation, - to deal with the big problems. so not any cooperation behind the scenes with seats perhaps at by elections and things? we have a long history. back in the day, you know, - we were the party of government. it was us and the conservative party that were the main two parties. - we have this extraordinary liberal history. we are not about to go i and do that and just throw that away for the sake i of a short term election.