In this constituency nestled in the West Yorkshire hills, tensions are running high again.
“It’s like a battlefield,” described one voter. “Everything gets so nasty and toxic when there is an election,” he added.
Westminster’s eyes will fall on a group of towns of Batley and Spen on Thursday, as they go to the polls for the fifth time in just six years.
Jo Cox was murdered in 2016
Since the assassination of MP Jo Cox by a far-right terrorist, this area has not recovered and community divisions are more visible than ever.
Simon Thirkill says he’s Batley through and through, he’s hurt by the division of this election.
Speaking to Sky News, he said: “It’s upsetting and heartbreaking that people can come in and stir things up so quickly.
“Batley is normally a strong constituency where people come together and talk about issues, but people have seen us as an easy target over the past few years and it’s an easy place to divide us.
“We’re still coming to terms with what happened to Jo Cox here five years ago, it’s really hard to put into words how all this hate and anger is making us feel now.”
Last week, during an election campaign, the Labor candidate was aggressively challenged by a man who was not from the region.
Simon Thirkill said it was “heartbreaking that people could come in and stir things up so quickly”
And on weekends, people ask were pelted with eggs and assaulted.
West Yorkshire Police said they recorded four offenses in connection with the attack and posted a photo of a man they wanted to speak to.
The political divide has been driven by the fact that 16 candidates are running, including George Galloway, a man who campaigned within the Muslim community several times before.
He has a lot of support for Batley and his involvement could divide the Labor vote and the hand …
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Source: news.sky.com
This notice was published: 2021-06-28 19:18:00