News / Politics
Rees reselected as Labour candidate for Bristol mayor
Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn congratulated Marvin Rees minutes after the Bristol mayor was announced as the party’s candidate for the 2020 mayoral election.
Rees had faced a trigger ballot to stand again for the top job at City Hall, in which every branch of the local party voted to either readopt him as candidate or go through a full selection process.
Rees was confirmed by both a majority of the city’s Labour branches and affiliates including trade unions, and now becomes the third person to officially enter the 2020 mayoral race following Sandy Hore-Ruthven for the Greens and Mary Page for the Lib Dems.
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Corbyn tweeted: “What Marvin and @LabourBristol are achieving in the face of austerity shows what will be possible with a Labour government working with Labour councils to invest in all our communities.”
Following his reselection, Rees rattled off a list of his achievements while in office.
He said: “In the face of austerity and despite ever shrinking funds from central government, my administration has protected all local libraries and children’s centres, unified the city to bring Channel 4 to Bristol, as well as securing millions of pounds working towards cleaner air and better public transport which we all deserve.
“And we have united city partners – public, private, voluntary, and faith – around a groundbreaking strategy to tackle inequality and deliver right through to 2050, turning the tale of two Bristols into one city.”
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Read more: Rees: ‘We have got to have ambitions for Bristol’
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Rees said that he was “delighted” to have received majority support in both Labour branches and with the trade unions.
He added: “I look forward to the city elections next year, and to continue building a better Bristol where nobody is left behind.
“It will be so positive to campaign in 2020 on our excellent record of the last few years and to deliver on our plans for a mass transit system, building more homes and communities, ensuring children get the best possible start to life and growing an inclusive fairer city of hope.”
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