The first 100 days in Oxfordshire

October 12 marked the first 100 days of a Labour government. 10o days ago, nationally, we were waiting to find out the size of the Labour majority, and to what extent the incoming Labour Party would be able to deliver their message of #Change. Remember that?

Locally, in Oxfordshire we watched a seismic shift as seats that had been blue for hundreds of years shifted left – to Labour (Banbury) and the Liberal Democrats (the rest of rural Oxfordshire).

The “first 100 days” measurement is an American import, historically applied to presidents who have a bedding-in period between the election and taking up their role. It doesn’t fit so neatly over here, where the new Government starts immediately after the election. This year, much of it has been taken up by a summer recess and conference season. We can only imagine the impact of such a significant influx of new MPs in Westminster, with new staff to recruit, offices to set up… but the voters don't wait. So we've taken a look at what the top three parties say they've delivered in this first crucial 100 days, with, of course, a local lens.

(By the way, each week we round up the detail of each Oxfordshire MP's public engagements and issue it on a Friday as part of our newsletter, with the very best of that week's local news. You can find it on Twitter, Bluesky, and free to your inbox: just hit the subscribe button.)

Let's start with the Government headlines. Social feeds were swamped with content proclaiming the Government's fast start, and both of Oxfordshire’s Labour MPs (Sean Woodcock in Banbury and Anneliese Dodds in Oxford East) were quick off the mark to share it. This particularly clever widget will tell you what the Labour Party have done for you locally, based on you entering your postcode. Quite a lot appears to be generic national content with the phrase “South East” dropped in at key points, but you have to admire the effort to localise.

And this one has a more intergalactic take. Sound on!

The Conservative Party, as the official opposition, put a different spin on it. This, series of images below shared by Oxfordshire Conservatives on their Facebook page together with the hashtag #noideakeir is a solid attack. With no MPs in the county they aren't easily able to localise the content, in contrast to the Liberal Democrats and their five Oxfordshire MPs.

Oxfordshire’s Liberal Democrats might be less handy with the graphics, but in a statement to the Clarion, they said they were “off to a flying start”:

The 12th October marks 100 days since the general election, which saw the Conservatives face huge losses across the country, and a complete wipeout in Oxfordshire. At the general election on the 4th July 2024, the Conservatives faced a total wipe-out in Oxfordshire, losing Bicester & Woodstock, Henley & Thame, Didcot & Wantage and Witney to the Liberal Democrats. Lib Dem MP Layla Moran was re-elected in Oxford West & Abingdon and Labour won in Banbury and Oxford East.

In the first 100 days of the new Parliament, Lib Dem MPs have been hard at work fighting for their constituents. Layla Moran visited victims of the recent flooding in South Abingdon. Charlie Maynard met with the CEO of Network Rail to discuss the Witney Rail project. Olly Glover met the Chief Executive of Oxford University Hospitals NHS Trust to discuss expansion works at the John Radcliffe Hospital. Calum Miller questioned the Prime Minister over the broken water regulatory system following sewage dumping in Combe and Freddie van Mierlo secured a meeting with a Minister over the repair of Marsh Lock bridge on the Thames Path.

As the new Labour government approaches 100 days in office, they have faced significant criticisms, especially over their decision to withdraw the Winter Fuel Payment and maintain the two-child benefit cap. Oxfordshire’s Lib Dem MPs, who voted against the cuts to Winter Fuel Payments and voted to remove the two-child benefit cap, have called for the new government to do more to address residents’ concerns. Speaking afterwards Layla Moran, Freddie van Mierlo, Charlie Maynard, Calum Miller and Olly Glover said: “At the general election this year, residents across Oxfordshire voted to end years of chaos under the Conservatives. Since July, we have been hard at work delivering on their concerns.

“It’s been sad to see the Labour Party become mired in internal division and petty office politics, rather than focusing on the things that really matter to local residents. What residents across Oxfordshire want now is delivery. We need to see the NHS and care service rescued, we desperately need an end to the cost of living crisis, and our rivers and lakes cannot be polluted any more by sewage. Oxfordshire’s Liberal Democrat MPs will keep fighting for that fair deal which local residents deserve.”

Some local MPs have posted videos of their own, marking their own, local achievements.

Here's Bicester & Woodstock's Calum Miller:

And here is Henley & Thame's Freddie van Mierlo:

The walled garden of Facebook doesn't allow us to embed Witney MP's Charlie Maynard's video, but if you live in Witney, or just want to see the efforts of a constituency MP, have a watch on the link.

Finally in a cutting statement on BBC Politics' Any Questions, Oxford West & Abingdon MP Layla Moran was brutal about the Conservative opposition, and its ongoing leadership battle:

For local MPs as for the national Government, there’s no honeymoon period. Constituents expect their newly elected MPs to be sorting out their problems from day one, even with intractable issues that bedevilled the previous MPs for years. What do you think? How is your local MP delivering for you? If you're on Twitter or Bluesky let us know in the replies.