By Maria Zaccaro, Local Democracy Reporter

With the general election on December 12 looming, the Local Democracy Reporting Service takes a look at the Southampton Itchen constituency, which includes Bargate, Bitterne, Bitterne Park, Harefield, Peartree, Sholing, and Woolston wards.
To read about the candidates, and some of the issues for Southampton Test, click here

 

The Itchen candidates: Liz Jarvis, Lib Dem; Simon Letts, Labour; Kim Rose, UKIP; Osman Sen-Chadun, Green; and Royston Smith, Conservative

Many have described it as a battleground within the city and with no doubt it is one of the places where next week’s election could be won or lost.

Southampton Itchen has been under the spotlight over the past weeks as it is one of the most marginal seats in the country.

In 2017 Conservative Royston Smith won by only 31 votes, beating Labour candidate Simon Letts.

Now Smith, who was first elected in 2015 after long-standing Labour MP John Denham stood down, is hoping to retain his seat.

He and Letts are ready for a re-match, with Simon Letts again standing as the Labour Party candidate.

Also standing are Liberal Democrat Liz Jarvis, Green Party candidate Osman Sen-Chadun and UKIP candidate Kim Rose.

They have all been canvassing for weeks now, handing hundreds of leaflets out and listening to what residents would like to see in the city.

Southampton Itchen is home to the busiest cruise port in northern Europe and it has one of the most complete medieval walls in the UK still standing.

It also hosts Solent University, one of the two universities in the city, as well as a brand new cultural quarter and art gallery, the Mayflower Theatre, Ocean Village Marina and WestQuay shopping centre. Many have described next Thursday’s election as the Brexit election but there are many other issues that Southampton Itchen residents also care about with housing and homelessness topping the list. Hundreds of flats are expected to be built across the constituency, while many residents are said to be concerned about the number of people sleeping rough in the city centre.

Pollution, education and economic growth are also important issues in the area with a number of sites in the city centre set for a complete makeover as part of moves that aim to attract new businesses and retain students.

Itchen is also a constituency that has a long association with Southampton’s maritime past, being the home of the Vosper Thornycroft ship-building yard until 2003.

And while some of the issues in the constituency are different to those in Southampton Test, residents of both constituencies often agree on the need for more police officers across the city and measures to improve traffic flow on busy roads.

Backing his party’s manifesto, Royston Smith stressed the need to “get Brexit done”.

But he also promised residents of Southampton to fight for the issues that matter the most to them.

“I want to make Southampton and its residents safer, more prosperous and to make our city one of which we can all be proud”, he said.

His position is totally different to the one held by Lib Dem Liz Jarvis who said she is “very concerned” about the impact of Brexit on the Southampton economy and jobs in the area, as well as the travel industry.

She also said she’s determined to fight for better mental health provision for young people and against cuts to the NHS.

But contrastingly UKIP candidate Kim Rose believes that the outcome of the EU Referendum must be honoured.

“Only a vote for UKIP is a vote to honour the Referendum result,” he said.

Meanwhile, addressing public transport and encouraging investment in sustainable energy are among Mr Sen-Chadun’s pledges.

“For a greener and more supportive future, we must ensure the running of affordable, frequent services while aiming to reduce energy usage and the impact on our environment”, he said.

Improving transport is also what Simon Letts has promised. He also said housing, education, employment rights, infrastructure investment and devolution are among his priorities and promised more police presence in the west part of the city.

Talking to the Local Democracy Reporting Service about the Itchen constituency, last month he said Labour is a “strong challenge to the Conservatives”.

“Every vote is going to count but we have a chance.”

Over the past week Itchen has also attracted Prime Minister Boris Johnson and Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn.

Jeremy Corbyn visited St Mary’s Stadium on November 29 and announced that Labour would create ten new national parks and plant two billion trees in the UK, should the party win the election.

He explained concerns regarding air pollution, noise pollution, sustainability and traffic congestion and said that the party’s green manifesto, a Plan for Nature, is a “serious plan” but would need the backing and support from local communities.

Meanwhile, Boris Johnson made a visit to the Associated British Ports in Southampton on Monday.

The Prime Minister said the city has a huge potential and stressed that there can be a balance between the need to tackle environmental issues and the one to support the port that brings money in to the city.

During his visit he stressed the importance of “getting Brexit done” and said Southampton will benefit from the money that the country would be receiving after Brexit.

The two recent visits highlighted the important part that Itchen will play in next week’s election.

What happened last time?

The results in Itchen at the 2017 general election were:

Conservative 21,773 - Elected
Labour 21,742
Liberal Democrats 1,421
UK Indepedence Party 1,122
Green 725

Where to vote

Check information on polling stations on this council pdf.