Labour set to choose candidate to fight Mansfield seat at next general election

Its long list of candidates has been whittled down to three, who will speak in front of members of the Mansfield Constituency Labour Party at a selection meeting at Ladybrook Community Centre on Saturday.

The trio are Coun Leslie Ayoola, a Nottingham Council member, former Army officer Louise Jones and former Mansfield Labour Party chairman Steve Yemm, who has previously stood to be Mansfield’s mayor.

After Saturday’s hustings, a vote will be taken among the 400-plus Mansfield CLP members to decide who will represent the town at the general election, which is likely to be called during 2024.

Their decision must then be ratified by Labour’s ruling body, the national executive committee.

Whoever is selected faces a huge task in overturning Conservative Coun Bradley's 16,306 majority, achieved at the 2019 election with a 63.9 per cent share of the vote.

However, for many years, Mansfield was a Labour safe seat, with Don Concannon holding it as MP for 21 years from 1966 and Sir Alan Meale serving as MP for 30 years, until he was beaten by Coun Bradley in 2017.

The latest candidate to throw his hat into the ring is 52-year-old Coun Ayoola, who lives in Mapperley, Nottingham, where he grew up.

He is married to teaching assistant Diana, and they have two children, aged 10 and two. He has been a city councillor for eight years, representing the Mapperley ward, after winning two elections.

He works as the commercial and business manager for the Nottinghamshire and Lincolnshire Credit Union, which provides financial help, advice and services for the less well-off, as an alternative to banking.

This is the second time he has been shortlisted to fight a general election, having been pipped by Greg Marshall as Labour’s candidate for the seat of Broxtowe in 2019.

Describing himself as "a social entrepreneur”, Coun Ayoola also runs a volunteer-led social enterprise called Be-Global, which helps small businesses.

“I have a passion for working in the voluntary and community sectors,” he said. “I am focused on getting the best for our communities.

"I believe I would be a unifying force for Mansfield, bringing hope and investment. I have a drive for championing the causes of people less well-off than yourself.”

Ms Jones spent seven years in the Army, in the intelligence corps, and served in places such as Afghanistan.

She now works for an intelligence services company and specialises in tech solutions to disaster response..

Ms Jones is adamant cuts to the Armed Services must be halted, but says her top three priorities for Mansfield would be “tackling child poverty, supercharging tech education and cutting NHS waiting lists”.

She said: “I’d also fight to get our public services on track,. I’m the candidate who can deliver a different, brighter future for the town.

“Voters in Mansfield now know the Tories have let them down.”

Addressing voters, Mr Yemm said: “As your MP, I will work tirelessly to improve the lives of everyone in Mansfield. I have the drive and resilience to deliver for you. I have the values and experience to match. I want to listen to as many Mansfield voters as possible, to hear your stories, understand the values that shape you and what you think your Labour candidate should be focused on.”