Voters, tellers and party workers.
Reference Code:
SOBA 5/1/36
Date:
2015-5-7 (creation)
Description:
Assorted interviews from the day of the vote itself. As described by the depositor: The voter: On the day of the count we accompanied one voter Alison Litherland, from her home to the polling booth at St Matthew’s Church - a walk that lasted 7 and a half minutes. Alison said: “I am not a member of any political party. I have watched some of the national debates and I have been to some of the Hustings and I have also had lots of leaflets through the door, most of which I have not really read. I do know the policies of all the main parties and I generally vote for the party whose policies I agree with. I have thought about tactical voting, but that way madness lies. “There are more posters and leaflets than I have seen before, the parties have been very active. There is a lot of concern around here about social justice and a lot of scepticism about the Conservative government’s claim to have to reduce the national debt. “I have never told the Party Tellers who stand outside the polling booth in the Church hall how I am going to vote, I give them my number and that is it. They do it to knock up people who they have canvassed and who have said they will vote for them.” The Tellers St Matthew’s: One Teller at St Matthew’s Church Hall told us: “We are taking people’s polling card numbers; we record them so we don’t “knock them up” later in the day so we know if those people have voted.” Another Teller said: “It is all confidential,” while a third Teller commented: “We are given a full official briefing and told what the regulations are even to how big our rosettes are. We are not allowed to go into the polling station or campaign and give leaflets out or talk to people or each other about a politics.” The Party Workers: We visited the Labour campaign hub in Alex Wood Hall in Norfolk Street, twice on the day of the vote. In the morning party workers spoke to us as they were getting polling returns and tallying these against their potential voters. Labour activist Ken, narrated the scene in front of him. Ken told us: “We have previously been round finding out who will vote Labour and we have used that information to create a list. We call it our “knock up” list and as people pass the polling station, we collect the polling card number from their card and collate this in order that we don’t then go and knock up the voters who have voted. If anyone is left on the list we then go and remind them that it is polling day, normally at mid-day or after traditional work hours around 5pm in the evening. “We can drive them to the poll if they are disabled or have a disability but most of it is about reminding them it is Election Day. We are representing Petersfield ward today, where the office is based, but there will be similar offices in people’s homes in the wards they represent so that we are in striking distance of the voters.” Poster voter activist: In the morning we spoke to one voter Phil, who had driven to the Labour HQ to get some Vote Labour boards that had been taken down in his street Pretoria Road, leaving only Vote LD posters standing. Phil said: “Someone stole all the vote Labour posters in my street in Pretoria Road, Cambridge, so I have come to the Labour HQ to get some more and replace them. I am a supporter of the Labour party but not a member. They left all the LD ones, I thought people shouldn’t steal these things so I came and got some more. I have voted already. It is a bit terrible really, it feels underhand to me. ” An elderly voter: Brian Butler, 84, in Abbey Ward, walked with us to his polling booth with his wife. Brian told us: ”Three months before the election you get a card through your door to fill in and if you are on the list you don’t fill it in and if you aren’t you fill it in and get given a number. A fortnight before Election Day you get given a polling card and told where to vote and get given a number. I am 84 and I have voted in every election since I came out of the Forces. I vote for the person I think will do something for Cambridge, irrespective of what party they are. My wife and I are number 44 and 46!” The Tellers Abbey Ward: Martin a Liberal Democrat Teller at Abbey Ward Polling Booth told us: “We are ticking our supporters off so we know if they have voted”. “Mostly people are happy to give us their numbers but if not we don’t ask for them. I think it is a really important means of ensuring we get our people out to vote.” Martin is also a “Knocker Upper”, he said: “Mostly because people have already said they will support us they are generally happy to see us and they ask us if we are going to win. We would send a car if they wanted a lift but we don’t walk them to the polls.” He thought the present system of voting served us well: “This is a very secure way of voting rather than online, but if it went online you wouldn’t have Tellers. To me it doesn’t make any sense to hold an Election on a working day, I would have it over two days and at least one of them a weekend day. With online voting it is hard to secure, this is a low tech process but it works.” Another Abbey Ward Teller of 20 years Martin a Labour supporter said: “People use their body language if they don’t want to give a number”. “We were told at about 10 am that 20 per cent had voted already which sounds a good turn out.” Julia Ball another Teller said: “I have been a Teller for about the last ten years for the Labour Party, it is quite useful.”
Collection:
Women’s Parliamentary Radio publications and podcasts, conducted by Boni Sones with contributions by Jackie Ashley, Deborah McGurran and Linda Fairbrother


Unused audio
Reference Code:
SOBA 5/1/40
Date:
2015-4-4-2015-5-5 (creation)
Description:
Alternate versions of interviews that were not ultimately used. Includes extended version of Rupert Read from the Bike Debate (part in SOBA 5/1/11); a combination of the interviews with City Council’s Marketing and Press Officer, the City Council’s Electoral Services Manager, and a reporter from the Cambridge Evening News (SOBA 5/1/8 and 5/1/34); a shorter version of the Julian Huppert interviews at the Unite Against Fascism events (SOBA 5/1/13); and an extended version of the Nat Bennett interview (SOBA 5/1/25).
Collection:
Women’s Parliamentary Radio publications and podcasts, conducted by Boni Sones with contributions by Jackie Ashley, Deborah McGurran and Linda Fairbrother


Cambridge Evening News: part two
Reference Code:
SOBA 5/1/34
Date:
2015-5-5 (creation)
Description:
Interviews with Chris Elliot, political editor and reporter at the Cambridge Evening News. As described by the depositor: When we met Chris in the Boardroom of the CEN two days before the General Election he was getting his troops in order. He said: “For the first time ever we are not going to produce a newspaper on the morning after the Election because the results don’t come through until 4 or 5 O’clock. From a production point of view we are going to do it online. “We are going to have Twitter, a live blog on our website, separate stories will be posted direct from the count via email and our laptops straight onto the CEN website. It is a revolution compared to previous elections. Social media is a lot more up and running now than it was in 2010. “We have 9 counts and we are going to have reporters at five of them, picking up details from the other four. They will be emailing their material to another member of staff who will be at home, not even in the office, who will feed them into a live blog. Twitter is the fastest way to get the results out there, it will be on our individual Twitter accounts and then onto our website. “We now have a 30 or 40 thousand readership and on a daily basis we get 50 to 60 thousands hits on our website. It is a big change from the days when I started in journalism 30 years ago when we would sell 60 or 70 thousand papers a night, the website isn’t up to that speed yet but it is getting there. “My first General Election was in 1979, when Thatcher came to power, we then had three terms of Tony Blair, then John Major, and I have covered all of these things through the prism of Cambridge. “In the office we are monitoring Twitter all the time in case something pops up that is of interest to us. The national papers can be political and support a particular party but we have to be factual. We have ensured that all the parties have had a fair say and we are pleased about that and now we have to wait and see what happens on Thursday. “
Collection:
Women’s Parliamentary Radio publications and podcasts, conducted by Boni Sones with contributions by Jackie Ashley, Deborah McGurran and Linda Fairbrother


City Council’s Electoral Services Manager and her assistant
Reference Code:
SOBA 5/1/3
Date:
2015-4-21 (creation)
Description:
As described by the depositor: The day after the close of voter registration on April 21st we recorded interviews with Vicky and her assistant Emily Watts, the Electoral Support Officer, about the Council’s outreach work to get people to register to vote. Cambridge is a student Town. A record number of people registered to vote, over 100000. Newspapers, TV and social media helped push those numbers up and the team ran an “informative” Twitter account. Turnout last time was 67.1 per cent, (national average was 65) and in May 2015 it was fewer at 62.1 per cent. (national average 66.1). Paper, equipment and staff training are next on Vicky’s to do list.
Collection:
Women’s Parliamentary Radio publications and podcasts, conducted by Boni Sones with contributions by Jackie Ashley, Deborah McGurran and Linda Fairbrother


Harriet Harman's Pink Bus
Reference Code:
SOBA 5/2/1
Date:
2015-2-25 (creation)
Description:
Interviews with Daniel Zeichner (candidate) and Harriet Harman MP on Harman's Pink Bus.
Collection:
Women’s Parliamentary Radio publications and podcasts, conducted by Boni Sones with contributions by Jackie Ashley, Deborah McGurran and Linda Fairbrother


Reflections on King's College hustings; and interview with Cambridge Liberal Democrat Treasurer
Reference Code:
SOBA 5/2/24
Date:
2015-5-6 (creation)
Description:
Includes interview with Cambridge Liberal Democrat Treasurer Rod Cantrill; and reflections on the April 30th King’s College hustings with co-Chair Eleni Courea.
Collection:
Women’s Parliamentary Radio publications and podcasts, conducted by Boni Sones with contributions by Jackie Ashley, Deborah McGurran and Linda Fairbrother


Labour, Liberal Democrat and Green party campaigns
Reference Code:
SOBA 5/2/21
Date:
2015-5-4 (creation)
Description:
Includes interviews at the Labour party HQ with general election candidate Daniel Zeichner; beside the Green party 'sunflower bus' in Cambridge City centre with general election candidate Rupert Read and City Council candidate Oscar Gillespie; and at the Liberal Democrat party HQ with Spencer Haggard, party chair.
Collection:
Women’s Parliamentary Radio publications and podcasts, conducted by Boni Sones with contributions by Jackie Ashley, Deborah McGurran and Linda Fairbrother


Cambridge Assessment hustings
Reference Code:
SOBA 5/2/19
Date:
2015-4-29 (creation)
Description:
Staff hustings for Cambridge Assssment, a large local employer. Includes introductions of all the general election candidates, and an interview with Simon Lebus, CEO of Cambridge Assessment.
Collection:
Women’s Parliamentary Radio publications and podcasts, conducted by Boni Sones with contributions by Jackie Ashley, Deborah McGurran and Linda Fairbrother



Day of voting
Reference Code:
SOBA 5/2/25
Date:
2015-5-7 (creation)
Description:
Covering 9am to 6pm on the day of the General Election. Includes interviews with voters, party tellers and activists.
Collection:
Women’s Parliamentary Radio publications and podcasts, conducted by Boni Sones with contributions by Jackie Ashley, Deborah McGurran and Linda Fairbrother












Interview with Vicky Pryce, economist at CBR, on Philip Hammond's statement to the Commons and Brexit
Reference Code:
SOBA 1/14
Date:
2018-03-15 (creation)
Description:
Pryce discusses Brexit and the economy, modest growth at the bottom of the G7 and G20. Hammond was optimistic in his speech about employment and the economy, Pryce questions how low paid these jobs are and supporting these with benefit payments. The fall in the pound and the Bank of England's expenditure to ensure that banks are lending has kept the economy going, but productivity has suffered. Sones asks about whether the country could have got to this point without austerity, Pryce argues that we need higher productivity and growth in many industries, the UK has undertaken the wrong 'type' of austerity. Sones asks about a World Trade Organisation/Hard Brexit, Pryce cites evidence that the UK would not be able to adequately trade especially as WTO Rules do not cover the service industry. Pryce is optimistic that Brexit will be a success and a 'soft' Brexit, despite losing 2% of GDP.
Collection:
Women’s Parliamentary Radio publications and podcasts, conducted by Boni Sones with contributions by Jackie Ashley, Deborah McGurran and Linda Fairbrother


Interview with Jo Platt MP
Reference Code:
SOBA 1/30
Date:
2018-06-06 (creation)
Description:
Platt asked the Prime Minister if she would help set up a national database of ADHD sufferers. Platt, the Labour and Co-operative MP for Leigh and the co-chair of the All Party Parliamentary Group on ADHD asked Theresa May the Prime Minister if she would do more to help people with ADHD and set up a national database. Platt and Helen Whately MP launched the APPG for ADHD at the beginning of 2018 has been working with support groups to enable more research to be conducted about it and to ensure better integration of services. Platt talks to Sones about the Prime Ministers supportive response to it.
Collection:
Women’s Parliamentary Radio publications and podcasts, conducted by Boni Sones with contributions by Jackie Ashley, Deborah McGurran and Linda Fairbrother


Interview with Siobhain McDonagh MP: housing and the National Trust rent rises, proxy votes, Brexit and Antisemitism in the Labour Party
Reference Code:
SOBA 1/40
Date:
2018-07-24 (creation)
Description:
McDonagh, Labour MP for Mitcham and Morden speaks about being concerned with the National Trust's plans to increase their tenants' rent to market levels, believing that this will impact those with disabilities. Sones asks about the proxy voting row over the breaking of Liberal Democrat MP Jo Swinson's pairing arrangement while she was on maternity leave, McDonagh calls it a 'breach of trust'. On Brexit, McDonagh believes in a Peoples' Vote when the deal is known.
Collection:
Women’s Parliamentary Radio publications and podcasts, conducted by Boni Sones with contributions by Jackie Ashley, Deborah McGurran and Linda Fairbrother


Interview with Seema Malhotra MP: The Brexit Select Committee
Reference Code:
SOBA 1/43
Date:
2018-09-13 (creation)
Description:
Malhotra, Labour MP for Feltham and Heston is a member of the Brexit Select Committee. She speaks to Sones after PMQs where the Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn had questioned Theresa May MP the Prime Minister on the issue of Universal Credit. Sones asks Malhotra whether she thought PMQs was too noisy, the response May gave and if the Brexit Select Committee was being effective. Malhotra stated that PMQs was so noisy, she could not hear Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn and calls for the Government to take this more seriously. They discuss the Chequers Brexit Deal and Malhotra believes it leaves too many unanswered questions.
Collection:
Women’s Parliamentary Radio publications and podcasts, conducted by Boni Sones with contributions by Jackie Ashley, Deborah McGurran and Linda Fairbrother


Interview with Heidi Allen MP on 'fortune Phil's' Budget and Brexit
Reference Code:
SOBA 1/51
Date:
2018-10-30 (creation)
Description:
Allen, the MP for South Cambridgeshire speaks to Parliamentary Radio after Chancellor Philip Hammond produced a budget giving extra money to public services, such as health, defence and pot holes. Allen sits on the Work and Pensions Select Committee and says that Hammond has not done enough to redress the balance of austerity. Allen represents a strong remain constituency where people are employed in agriculture, a high tech industry and academia. She supports a Norway type deal embracing both the single market and the customs union which would solve the problem of the Northern Irish border. Allen explained that she would continue to campaign to reform the introduction of Universal Credit.
Collection:
Women’s Parliamentary Radio publications and podcasts, conducted by Boni Sones with contributions by Jackie Ashley, Deborah McGurran and Linda Fairbrother