The former political commentator has said now is the time 'to cease being a spectator and start being a player'
Political journalist Paul Waugh has been confirmed as the Labour candidate for Rochdale in the general election.
Waugh unsuccessfully applied to stand in the constituency at the February by-election, losing out to Azhar Ali who then however lost support from the party over alleged comments he made about Israel and the Hamas’ attacks on October 7th.
George Galloway, leader of the Workers Party of Britain, subsequently won the by-election after a divisive and chaotic campaign. Waugh will now take on the outspoken former-Labour MP in the hope of returning the constituency to Labour after MP Sir Tony Lloyd held the seat since 2017, before his death this January.
Waugh’s career as a political journalist has spanned across a large number of publications. He was previously Chief Political Commentator at the i newspaper and former Political Editor at HuffPost UK, PoliticsHome, The Independent and Evening Standard.
He was also a presenter of the BBC’s Week In Westminster show. Having spent 26 years making contacts in the House of Commons, his political experience should come in useful.
As a self-described “proud Rochdalian”, Waugh, who said his family history in the area goes back generations, announced it will be a “true honour” to represent his hometown. Making his leap into politics, Waugh said he wanted to stop “being a spectator and start being a player” and has grappled with the fact he can now no longer go back to his job as an impartial political commentator.
In a column about his experience standing as an MP in the February by-election, he described setting up a campaign control room out of his childhood bedroom in his mum’s council house, living off “chippy teas” from the local chip shop and working from six in the morning to midnight.
His wife works in the NHS and Waugh has said he feels a “cold fury” at the Tory Government’s handling of the NHS since 2010, citing this as an important factor in wishing to stand as an MP.
In another column for the inews in January, Waugh wrote: “I can’t stand by to see the Tories ruin the NHS, having already crashed the economy and Britain’s global reputation under the Truss disaster.
“And while the Conservatives tear themselves apart afresh, Labour needs more than ever a unifying candidate who can champion all of Rochdale’s fantastic diversity and live up to our proud Co-Operative history.”
Waugh has also been critical of George Galloway, calling him an “extremist” and “Putin’s parrot” on LBC, over Galloway’s previous praise for Russia and China.
After being chosen as the Parliamentary candidate for the general election, Waugh declared on X it was a “ true honour to have been selected as Labour’s Parliamentary candidate for my home town.”
He continued: “Rochdale desperately needs a Labour government and a Labour MP to end 14 years of Tory chaos and decline. We need an MP who can unite the town, and who reflects the basic decency and local pride that all us Rochdalians share.
“Labour is back in the service of working people. And I’ll do everything in my power to ensure that Rochdale gets an NHS back on its feet and the economic renewal its residents deserve.”
Also standing in Rochdale alongside Waugh and Galloway is Martyn Savin of the Greens and Andy Kelly of the Lib Dems.
(Image credit: LBC / YouTube screenshot)
Hannah Davenport is news reporter at Left Foot Forward
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