‘A pig in a Labour rosette could win Dobbo’s seat’

Published: 05 August, 2010
by TOM FOOT

IT was a night marked by crashing disappointment for the Labour Party, an all-night session which effectively landed a killer blow to its 13 years of government.

Yet in Holborn and St Pancras, the shifting sands seemed to stand still as Frank Dobson bucked the trend and enjoyed a landslide victory against Conservatives and Liberal Democrats, who expected much better.

In testing conditions, his poll of more than 25,000 votes at May’s General Election made the constituency one of the safest in the country for Labour.

The usual claims were made that Mr Dobson had been rewarded for being well known locally, but the author AN Wilson has suggested the party could have chosen any candidate and still beaten opponents Jo Shaw and George Lee.

Even an oinking farmyard animal!

“I live in Camden Town – you could put a pig up for election and it would get in so long as it had a Labour rosette in its ear,” he said on Friday night.

His comments came during an appearance on Any Questions on Radio 4.

The normally ice-cool host Jonathan Dimbleby, possibly fearing the umbridge that might be setting in, quickly intervened: “In case the MP for that area thinks they are being defamed – he’s talking in general terms, sir or ma’am.”

But Mr Wilson, celebrated for his critical biographies, novels, works of popular history and columns in the Daily Mail and Evening Standard newspapers, didn’t stop there.

“No I’m not!” he said. “I’m talking about Dobbo, our MP.”

“Dobbo”, 70, won back his seat for the eighth time in May with a crushing 46.1 per cent majority and 25,198 votes.

In his radio appearance, Mr Wilson added that the coalition government was not being “nearly radical enough”, adding: “What we really need to do is to get away from this idea that an MP represents a local constituency – local councillors will do all that. 

“We should go over to a system more like the Continental system or the American system, where you are voting for people in Parliament who represent your own point of view.”

Mr Dobson, who celebrated his 70th birthday earlier this year, is expected to retire at the next general election – if the parliament lasts the entire term.

His departure from the political scene would open a route to Parliament for a number of local Labour Party activists, and attract attention from members across the country interested in a safe seat.

Mr Dobson joked yesterday (Wednesday) that he was already part pig following an organ transplant operation in 2008.

He said: “I couldn’t give a toss what AN Wilson thinks. I got 25,000 votes and Mr Wilson doesn’t like it. 

“I don’t know about a pig – but I have a heart valve made out of a pig so I suppose that may be close enough.”

Barrister Bob Latham, a former Labour councillor, said: “If you did put a pig up I think you would offend at least two major religious groups in Camden, which regard them as unclean animals. But in all seriousness, if you look at the recent election results, which I have been doing, there is no way this seat can be taken for granted. 

“I would say this with regard to Frank and Glenda, they have a strong personal following. Any new candidate would be facing an uphill struggle.”