What future will cats have under a Corbyn leadership?

The remarkable growth in the Labour Party’s membership since May has been widely commented on nationally. Latest official figures put total membership at just over 350,000, well ahead of the Conservatives’ estimated 100,000 members.

So far, pundits have spent their time speculating on what effect these new members will have on the character of the Labour Party and the prospect of intra-party strife over contentious policies such as renewal of Trident and the power of local constituencies to recall MPs. As (self?) important as these concerns are, I can’t help but feel they are taking attention away from the big question that confronts us, namely what future cat-themed Labour blogs will have under a Corbyn leadership?

Fortunately, if my experiences in Bournville are anything to go by I believe cat blogs will continue to occupy a place of affection in the Corbyn era.

How do I know this? Just yesterday, Liz Clements (@LizClements on Twitter), a returning party member, emailed me a photo of a cat she had spotted whilst out campaigning over the weekend. And given Bournville’s membership has grown by 66% since May I would like to believe Liz won’t be the last person to share with me a pic for Cats of the Campaign Trail.

And what a cracking cat Liz spotted. The cat is doing its best death stare and with its left eye a different colour to its right, it has got a David Bowie vibe.

In these uncertain times for Labour I hope local parties will welcome their new members and encourage them to make a positive contribution. I for one am looking forward to working with new members like Liz to help Labour connect with local people (and to grow Cats of the Campaign Trail along the way).

Cats of the Campaign Trail Roars Into the Corbyn Era

This afternoon, members of Bournville Labour Party got together in Cotteridge for our first campaign session since Jeremy Corbyn was elected Leader of the Labour Party.

Officially, we were out to get residents’ views on the local high street and how it might be improved. Unofficially, I think we all saw the session as a chance to see what residents made of our new leader. As such, even Corbyn supporters like myself were feeling a little nervous.

I’m pleased to say our campaign session went pretty well. For starters, we were joined by two new party members, Liz and Ted, who were very nice and displayed a relaxed confidence talking to residents on the doorstep.

Bournville Labour volunteers Stuart, Liz, Joan and Ted on Heathcote Road in Cotteridge

I was also pleasantly surprised by how we were greeted on the doorstep. With it being a Saturday afternoon, a lot of people were out but the people we did manage to speak with were friendly and, by and large, happy to ‘stop and chat’ with us. I didn’t encounter anyone who said they were put off voting Labour as a result of Jeremy Corbyn becoming Leader. Quite the opposite, in fact. Quite a few residents we spoke to said they were enthused by the change in leadership and two people asked if they could start leafleting and helping out for Bournville Labour.

It wasn’t just the human residents who responded positively to our presence. The cats of Cotteridge were on fine fettle, too. I only managed to catch one cat on camera but he/she did not disappoint (sadly I haven’t yet been able to persuade my Bournville volunteers to take snaps of cats they see on my behalf).

The featured image of the black and white cat roaring is a little misleading. The cat was actually very friendly and it was opening it’s mouth to make a friendly meow rather than anything fearsome. For proof, look at the picture I took a few second before the roar that never was:

Black and white cat strolling up to me on Cotteridge Road

It’s still very early days but I was pleasantly surprised by the reaction we got out and about in Cotteridge. I hope Bournville Labour will seize the opportunity presented by so many new members joining the party to develop a vibrant, sociable local Labour Party which is in tune with local residents’ concerns and aspirations.