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Ten throw their hats in by-election ring
Date published: 24 December 2010
TEN candidates will battle it out to take over from Labour’s disgraced former immigration minister Phil Woolas in the January 13 by-election.
They have thrown their hat in the ring for the Oldham East and Saddleworth seat — matching the record set in the 1995 by-election.
Nominations closed at 4pm yesterday for the vacancy after Phil Woolas was stripped of the seat which he scraped in by only 103 votes in May.
An historic election court held in Uppermill in September — the first for 99 years — found that Mr Woolas had deliberately lied about closest rival Elwyn Watkins.
Mr Watkins will once again try to win the marginal for the Lib-Dems, while public health consultant Debbie Abrahams, who contested Colne Valley for Labour in 2010, will battle it out for her party.
Seat
The Conservatives, who last won the seat (then called Littleborough and Saddleworth) in 1992, are sticking with barrister and former Hulme Grammar School pupil Kashif Ali, who came third in the May General Election.
UKIP’s North West Euro-MP Paul Nuttall, a former university lecturer from Merseyside, will stand, as will the Green Party’s Peter Allen, who fought High Peak last year.
Manchester publican Derek Adams represents the BNP, and Stephen Morris from Bury the English Democrats.
The other candidates are: Pirate Party leader Loz Kaye, a teacher at Liverpool Institute of Performing Arts; Monster Raving Loony Party’s Flying Brick (Nick Delves), and David Bishop from the Bus-Pass Elvis Party.
The new constituency was first won by Mr Woolas in 1997, the night Tony Blair’s New Labour swept to power.
Voters will use 56 polling stations across Oldham East and Saddleworth on January 13.
Comments
With a strong, local, experienced and likeable candidate in Paul Nuttal MEP, it would be folly to rule out the possibility that UKIP may surprise everybody by coming second or even, if the 'none of the above' vote refuses to stay at home, a shot at victory. For their Deputy Leader, UKIP have deployed concentrated resources in this by-election, in the same way as the Greens did last May to elect Caroline Lucas in Brighton Pavillion. The large protest vote could go to UKIP.
Nigel Carter 6Jan1
Have Your Say
There's been some hats gone to waste if the bookies are right. William Hill has Labour at 1/6 on favourite with the Lib/Dems at 9/2 against. The Tories are rank outsiders at 11/1. I don't know what it cost to kick out Mr. Woolas but it looks to have been wasted. Bad luck Elwyn.
By CommitteeMan @ 29/12/2010 16:12:05