Labour in 'emergency' funding plea as party 'faces tough budget choices'

LABOUR have put out an “emergency” call for cash – warning supporters that the party faces “tough choices” about its own funding.

In an email looking to raise money to fight the upcoming Runcorn and Helsby by-election – sparked by the resignation of a former Labour MP convicted of punching a man – Labour raised concerns of the threat posed by Reform UK. 

In the 2024 General Election, Labour won the seat with a convincing 53% of the vote, while Reform UK came second on 18%.

However, polling in the constituency has put Nigel Farage’s hard-right party on course to beat the incumbent Labour Government.

In a plea to supporters, Labour said: “We now know a by-election is set to take place in Runcorn and Helsby. Labour won this constituency in the General Election, Reform UK came second and the Tories a close third.

“We’re campaigning to win, but here’s the reality: every pound we spend fighting this by-election is a pound we can’t invest in the local elections. 

“And unless we raise enough money now, we’ll have to make tough choices about where we put our resources in the days ahead.”

The party urged supporters to “chip in with an emergency donation”.

Resigning MP Mike Amesbury triggered the process that will lead to a parliamentary by-election in Runcorn and Helsby on Monday. He signalled his intention to stand down in a letter sent to Chancellor Rachel Reeves.

Resigning MP Mike Amesbury (Image: PA) Amesbury was handed a suspended prison sentence for punching a man in a street in Frodsham, Cheshire, in October.

He was suspended by Labour when footage emerged of the incident and has spent the last few months sitting as an independent MP.

Runcorn and Helsby is a new constituency that was fought for the first time at the 2024 election.

Had the seat existed at the previous General Election in 2019, notional data suggests Labour would have won but on a slightly lower share of the vote (49%) than Amesbury achieved.

Based on the 2024 result, Reform would need a swing in the share of the vote of 17.4 percentage points to gain the seat.

This is the equivalent of a net change of 18 in every 100 people who voted Labour in 2024 switching to Reform.

The largest swing at a by-election in the 2019-24 parliament where a seat changed hands was 34.1 percentage points, from the Conservatives to the LibDems in North Shropshire.

A date has yet to be announced for the by-election in Runcorn and Helsby, which will be the first such contest since the 2024 General Election.

There were 23 by-elections during the 2019-24 parliament, of which 11 were Conservative defeats, two were Labour defeats, one was an SNP defeat and nine were held by the incumbent party.