RESIDENTS OF NORTHERN ENGLISH TOWN FEEL ‘LEFT BEHIND’ Main Political Parties don’t care about us

With just one week to go until Britons head to the polls, residents of a small northern town outside the metropolitan hub of Manchester said they felt apathetic about the July 4 election.

Describing a declining community, 71-year-old hair salon owner Samuel Riley said Oldham has been “left behind” by the two main political parties in the UK – the governing Conservatives, and the opposition Labour party.

“We’ve been left behind, greatly yes. We definitely have been left behind,” he said.

Riley has owned his salon for 45 years and has watched the community around him change drastically – going from a busy hub of activity to a sparsely populated high street.

He blames increases in cost of living for the decline in footfall.

Tattoo shop owner, Kevin McNulty – who has owned his business for eight years – has also seen fewer customers. He says that tattoos and piercings are a luxury that many people can no longer afford.

Three opinion polls last week predicted a record defeat for Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s Conservatives at a July 4 election, forecasting the Labour Party would comfortably win a large majority after 14 years in opposition.

But despite this predicted landslide win for Labour, some Oldham residents said they didn’t feel represented by either party.  “I don’t feel like they do anything for the good of us,” said 24-year-old rehabilitation worker Terri-Leigh Williams.