People are reminding Mike Gapes that he’s actually left Labour, because he seems to have forgotten

Mike Gapes campaign poster over the Independent Group logo
John Ranson


In the 1992 general election, Mike Gapes won the seat of Ilford South for the Labour Party. He’s since retained it six times. And in 2019, he’s running for re-election yet again. His campaign poster has a predictable look to it:

The key elements are what you’d expect. “Re-elect Mike Gapes”, it exhorts. “Real Labour values”, it assures. The red and yellow colour scheme will be familiar to anyone who’s seen previous Labour posters, such as this held by these Ilford South Labour activists:

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What’s the catch?

Gapes isn’t Labour. He left the party in February 2019 to form what was initially called The Independent Group. That party has since suffered its own defections, as well as name changes, and now goes by the pithy title of The Independent Group for Change. Eagle-eyed Ilfordians will spot the slightly nondescript TIGfC logo lurking in the bottom right corner of the poster, just above the small print.

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Some felt that Gapes’ choice of branding crossed the line from tribute to impersonation:

Others just couldn’t believe it:

Gapes really isn’t Labour

Since an election first began to look likely, the Ilford South Constituency Labour Party (CLP) has made the situation clear with a pinned tweet:

The CLP is now campaigning on behalf of candidate Sam Tarry, whose publicity helpfully uses the latest evolution of Labour’s colour palette:

Gapes has claimed in the past that he doesn’t need a by-election to confirm his popularity with the people of Ilford South:

But now voters will have the opportunity anyway. And it’ll be a choice between a genuine Labour candidate, standing on the Labour Party’s manifesto, or Gapes. And judging by the way people have seen through his attempt to nick Labour branding, he’ll be in for a tough ride trying to convince people he believes in Labour values.

Featured image via Twitter – Mike Gapes / Wikimedia – The Independent Group for Change

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  • Show Comments

    1. Sheesh! more idiots show their true colours. I suppose that’s a good thing though, for at least they are visibly showing their contempt for our country and people. It’s almost like all the opposition to Jeremy Corbyn secretly want him to win, they just can’t seem to help themselves showing what a bad choice voting for any one else other than J.C’s Labour Party is.

      The BBC, Tories, Lib Dems, The Brexit Party, Trump, Netanyahu, Farage, the 25-eyed deep states (the list grows rapidly on a daily basis), seem blindly hell-bent on viewing the majority of mankind as so stupid that we can no longer tell the difference between plain old ‘Good and Bad’………or……..they really want to show themselves up as the dishonest, unworthy people they are in order to ensure Jeremy Corbyn gets in.

      It seems to me what we are being offered by these idiots is;

      The ‘Devil’ we know, as opposed to the ‘Devil we don’t.

      The problem (for them) is that in this case, the real offer is;

      The ‘Devil’ we know Vs The near-saint we do.

      The choice is a rare one to be sure, but a no-brainer, The near-saint we do know, is by far, a better deal for us than even The Devil we know.

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