Eileen keeps the red flag flying in true-blue seat

Eileen Driver at the Co-op Party conference in Edinburgh

By Susan Press

October 15 2009

A formidable task awaits Eileen Driver at the next general election. She is standing against William Hague in the rock-solid Tory constituency of Richmond.

Chosen in May 2008 to try to dent Hague’s majority of almost 18,000, the ex-schoolteacher has no illusions about the odds of displacing the former Conservative leader.

But she says she is absolutely determined to keep the Labour flag flying in this remote rural constituency, which has the largest geographical area in the country.

Eileen said: “It’s terribly important to keep a voice for Labour going where it could be completely wiped out and I hope over time that we can build up our support.”

Next year’s hustings will be the first which Eileen has faced as a Parliamentary candidate. For 25 years she was a full-time teacher with three children to raise, which meant her time for political work was pretty limited.

She lives in Stokesley, originally an old market town which in recent years has expanded significantly with more modern housing developments.

An active member of the Co-op Party for some years, Eileen is a member of the North Yorkshire Area Committee.

Originally from Middlebrough, Eileen lived variously in Birmingham, Hertfordshire and Cambridge before moving back north — spending ten years as a teacher at a local comprehensive.

“I retired two years ago, which means I now have a lot more time to devote to politics and campaigning.

“It is sometimes a bit of a struggle on the doorstep and William Hague is of course a popular MP with a lot of support but I’m enjoying getting out and meeting people because there are lots of issues to talk about

“The Richmond constituency is a beautiful part of the country and it may look like an affluent place to live but there is a lot of rural poverty. Low-cost housing is very difficult to come by and for a lot of the local farmers it’s a difficult life.”

Recently, Eileen arranged a meeting with local farmers to talk over issues of concern. These include problems for tenant farmers, bureaucratic processes for approving pesticides, supermarket pricing of milk and problems related to crop-spraying.

She has also been aided in her campaign by a visit from DEFRA Minister Hilary Benn, who met local farmers and was guest speaker at a recent Labour Party supper.

Ed Miliband has offered moral support and Eileen was also thrilled a while ago to meet veteran left-winger Dennis Skinner, who sent her a personal message of solidarity.

Eileen has been a Labour Party member for over 25 years so is used to varying political fortunes — but in her part of the world, Labour has taken a particular hammering. There is currently just one Labour representative on North Yorkshire County Council.

Undaunted, Eileen is quietly getting on with her campaign and also enjoys her work with the Co-op Party and Area Committee. “One of the things I most enjoy about that is the work we are able to do to help in the local community by considering and deciding on applications for grant funding.

“That means we can allocate money to all kinds of local groups and good causes like hospices and I’m glad we are able to help. The values of the Co-operative Movement are very important to me. We have a lot of small businesses where I live and if they could all be run on co-operative lines that would be my idea of utopia.”

As a PPC, Eileen has enjoyed the chance to meet others standing for the first time at various training events and at the Brighton Labour Party Conference she will be lobbying on the things she cares about most.

“There are several issues of particular concern to me and one is how we treat carers for the elderly.

“Another is mental illness, an area which is often neglected although the Government has made some excellent efforts in the right direction.

”There is still a huge amount of stigma around mental health. Many employers still regard it not as an illness but a weakness. They need to have a lot more understanding and at the conference I hope I will have the opportunity to talk to Ministers about it.”

Eileen concedes that her chances of a place at Westminster may be small — but regards her opportunity to campaign in the past couple of years as a real positive.

“For many years, I was unable to stand as a candidate because of my family and teaching commitments, but I decided to give it a go and whatever happens we have acquired lots of new campaigning strategies and I hope my experience will be helpful to other candidates in the future.

“Things are not easy for us at the moment but in my view politics are a constantly evolving situation and though there are areas that need reflection, Labour has done a good job.”

“Throughout my life, I have always had a fierce sense that I don’t regret anything. I feel enriched by everything that I have done and it’s been a great experience getting out, meeting people, and being able to raise issues in my local community.”

Category: Politics