Bicester and Woodstock MP Labour candidate shares vision

We sat down with Veronica Oakeshott, Labour hopeful for the recently formed Bicester & Woodstock constituency, who shared her electoral vision for the area.

Ms Oakeshott said: "There is a real problem with congestion in Bicester.

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Veronica Oakeshott. (Image: Contribution.)

"The area has grown a lot and there are traffic jams even on weekdays.

"It is really important we have a listening MP and I have a huge amount of experience campaigning."

Veronica Oakeshott at a supporters' event in Woodstock on Friday night. (Image: Contribution.)

Works are underway toward completing the new EWR line which would form a link between the cities of Oxford and Cambridge via Bicester, Milton Keynes and Bedford.

Some concern had been expressed previously that residents were not being listened to.

Ms Oakeshott, who lives in the constituency with her husband and two children, said the area was "crying out for change".

An experienced campaigner. (Image: Contribution.)

She added: "Whether it’s the hard-working but under resourced GP surgery in Woodstock, or the challenges people face to find a decent home and pay their mortgage, or the congestion in Bicester as infrastructure fails to keep pace with housing, or the degradation of our beautiful environment."

Liberal Democrat prospective parliamentary candidate, Calum Miller, claimed in December last year that the seat was not a target for Labour.

Calum Miller. (Image: Unknown)

Ms Oakeshott dismissed the assertion as "absolute nonsense" saying "politically neutral polling" showed a win for Labour in the constituency.

The Labour party nationally has been consistently ahead in the polls since the start of 2022.

Though there has been recent backlash over the party's approach to conflict in Gaza - but this has not proved detrimental to its polling.

When asked about this, Ms Oakeshott said: "I've been out on doorsteps and I've not had anyone raise this with me once.

"What they are raising is the cost of shopping baskets and mortgages and how hard it is to get a GP appointment."

She added: "I do think what's happening in the Middle East is horrible."

Meanwhile "former Eton boy" Rupert Harrison is the Conservative candidate for the new constituency, a self-described "liberal Conservative".

Rupert Harrison. (Image: Rupert Harrison)

Ms Oakeshott concluded: "This is a huge honour and responsibility.

"I'm really excited and I have a lot of experience that I'll be bringing to the role."

Ms Oakeshott works for Global Witness, a non-profit environmental organisation, and has previously been a campaigner on domestic abuse issues and for Save the Children.

She also served as a councillor in Newham in London.

Labour's Bicester and Woodstock prospective parliamentary candidate. (Image: Contribution.)

The new Bicester & Woodstock constituency was formed after last year’s Boundary Commission Review and is formed of parts of constituencies such as Banbury, Henley and Witney.

Other candidates for the seat are as follows:

Liberal Democrat - Calum Miller

Conservative - Rupert Harrison

Green - Ian Middleton

Reform/Brexit - Augustine Obodo