Eastleigh By-Election - Real Result

Well, it was the, "Lib-Dems wot wunnit", as The Sun (for overseas readers, this is a national best-selling comic, photos of nubile women and not spelling are its main selling points - circulation ed), might have on its front page. However, they fail to mention on any of their pages, the collapse in the Lib-Dems vote (-14%) from the General Election 2010. Even so, sadly for all of  'Da Press' there was no upset, as the Lib-Dems managed a 'hold' and Nick Clegg's health didn't suffer too badly.

Seems, that UKIP managed a storming second place (vote +24%), the Conservatives forced into a combative 3rd place (vote down -13.9%) and the Labour Party pushed into an ignominious 4th but with an increase in its vote (+0.22%).

Sadly the, 'Elvis Loves Pets', party gained a derisory 72 votes and a miserly 0.17% of the vote. How can this be, given that the words Elvis, Love and Pets, were all in its title, and the UK is renowned for its love of pets and Elvis (It may be that the voters took this by-selection seriously - political ed).

The interesting thing about Eastleigh (there is an interesting thing about Eastleigh? ed) , is that it has a real working class history due to its association with the railway, so you would think that the Labour party would do better. However, a sneaky series of boundary changes since the first creation of the constituency in  1955 (Cons 20,215 50.68% vs Lab 19,670 49.32%), made the seat into a safe Tory seat, which then fell in the 1994 by-election to the Lib-Dems who have kept their paws on it ever since.

On a historical note (C-Sharp - musical ed), Eastleigh did have its own international airport at the beginning of the age of aviation called, "Eastleigh Aerodrome", as it was to be found in Eastleigh. But, during the aftermath of the Second World War, in what Eastleigh residents call, "The Crime of the Century", the airport was stolen in a smash and grab dawn raid by the neighbouring villianous Southampton. Southampton had obviously hoped no-one was looking, but were soon to rue this heinous crime!

Given there is a working justice system in the UK, the police were quickly on the scene and quick to nab the miscreant, Southampton and charge it with the serious crime of airport theft. Unfortunately for Eastleigh, the case was heard by one of England's most wonderfully eccentric judges, the Honourable Reginald Barking who, when the case was presented to him, dismissed it with the following,

"I am a Southampton supporter through and through and Matt Le Tissier is my hero, and in any case no-one has ever heard of Eastleigh, so on those grounds, and those grounds alone, I dismiss this case out of hand and awards costs against Eastleigh."

There has been an ongoing campaign ever since to get the airport renamed after this blatant failure of justice.

References

• The academic study,  "The Tyranny of Southampton: Its role in the subjugation of surrounding areas communucation links", doctoral thesis, by E A St Leigh, 
• "Free Eastleigh Airport", educational pamhplet,
• "1946: The Fall of Eastleigh Aerodrome", 
• "Southampton Airport is in Eastleigh", 

are available from all good booksellers, give a totally one sided view of the current situation.