‘We’ve just come out of a pandemic’: Cabinet minister says local elections disaster ‘must be seen in context’
7 May 2023, 11:24
Lucy Frazer says local elections must be put into 'context' - longer clip
Culture Secretary Lucy Frazer said the Tories' disastrous local elections results must be taken in 'context' as she claimed she understands people's 'frustrations' after thirteen years of Conservative rule.
Speaking to Andrew Castle this morning, the Cabinet minister reacted to her party's loss of more than 1,000 council seats across England on Thursday.
She began: "We must remember the context in which this local election was fought."
"We have been in power for thirteen years, so you can understand people's frustrations in relation to that."
"We've also just come out of a pandemic, we're in a war, there's the issue of the cost of living..."
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Andrew exclaimed: "You know it's amazing how un-Tory you look...you must get exhausted every day with the weight on your shoulders."
Ms Frazer responded: "We're focusing on the key things that matter to the British people, so what really matters to people is whether they can afford to live in the cost of living...."
"What we're hearing on the doorstep is people want us to protect the NHS, get those waiting lists down, and stop the boats and those are the things the Prime Minister has said he will focus on."
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Andrew challenged Ms Frazer: "What about Tory voters and the high taxes, the frozen thresholds, you cannot get elected on a platform that feels so un-Tory."
"The apathy you must be facing must be so demoralising."
Ms Frazer responded by reiterating the Conservative aims, noting cutting taxes and inflation and "getting the economy into a place of stability."
With references to the party's efforts, she concluded: "When people see the results of that they will see we are a government that can deliver."
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