General election road trip: Ludlow traders don’t rate hike in what they have to pay

Surrounded by the rolling Clee Hills, standing in the shadow of the majestic castle, and home to 500 listed buildings, it is little wonder Sir John Betjeman described Ludlow as ‘probably the loveliest town in England’.

And with its thriving open-air market and its narrow streets lined with its famous restaurants, cafes and independent retailers, it is little wonder that thousands flock to visit the town every year. For such a small town, Ludlow punches well above its weight, and it has been described by Country Life magazine as ‘the most vibrant small town in England’.

Relaxing on a bench as the sunshine breaks out over the market square is 71-year-old Keith Miles, who moved to Ludlow from nearby Leominster just over a year ago.

He says it was the range of artisan shops in the town that persuaded him to move to his flat in College Close, but fears that if the Government does not do more to support these businesses, then the town’s unique character could be under threat.

“The special thing about Ludlow is that they have got all of these small shops, but they need all the help they can get,” says Keith, who is semi-retired.

“People love the cafes, they love to sit around. Who would have thought years ago that people would sit out in the squares like they do now?

“I came from Leominster which was going the other way, it was losing its shops. I just worry that if they don’t do more to support the businesses in Ludlow then we could lose them as well.”

Keith says he is considering a vote for the Green Party, although he concedes it is unlikely to have much of an impact.

“I will probably vote for the Green Party candidate because she is local,” he says.

“I like Theresa May, but not her politics.”

The constituency, which also takes in Bridgnorth as well as small towns including Broseley, Clun and Craven Arms, is traditionally true-blue territory, although it was held by the Liberal Democrats as recently as 2005 before Philip Dunne reclaimed it for the Conservatives.

At the last election two years ago, he was returned with a resounding majority of 18,929, and will in all likelihood win here again. In 2015 the Green candidate came in last place out of five candidates, so the chances are Keith will be disappointed by the result.

That is not to say there are not many people who do not share his concerns about the prospects of small businesses in the town, with the proposed changes to the way business rates are calculated being a particularly sore point.

Just across the road from Mr Dunne’s office in Broad Street is Poyners drapery and clothing store, which has been in the town since 1879. In the window is a poster saying that the business faces an 81 per cent increase in business rates, and urges customers to sign a petition calling for a rethink. Shop assistant Margaret Edwards warns that the new business rates posed a real risk to people’s livelihoods.

“Ours are £955 a month,” she says. “That really is a lot of money, people are going to lose their jobs. It’s not just us, it will be everybody. People are worried about the money.”

Her colleague Jean Parker says the future of the town’s hospital, following the recent closure of its midwife-led maternity unit, is also a major concern. “We need the hospital in Ludlow, given the size of the town,” she says. “People who need treatment are having to travel to towns like Shrewsbury and Telford.”

Theresa May has talked a lot about those who are ‘just about managing’ in her speeches, but Poyners customer Sue Martin says there are many people in towns like Ludlow who are experiencing real hardship.

“We hear that the average wage is £600 a week, but it isn’t here,” says the 56-year-old, who has lived in Ludlow all her life.

“Yes there is a lot of wealth in Ludlow, but there is also a lot of the really poor. There is not much in between.

“I don’t think they realise how difficult it is for young people who can’t get onto the housing ladder. My son has just had to come home to live with us.

“Rents can cost £600 to £700 for a two-bedroom house, but when you are on £200 a week, how are you going to afford that? They need to start building more council houses.”

Sue says she has been disappointed by the quality of the debate saying so far, saying that all parties seem more interested in picking holes in each other’s manifestos than coming up with solutions for the problems faced by ordinary people. “I don’t think they understand working people’s problems at the moment,” she added.

Another customer in the shop, who declines to give his name, voices his unhappiness about the presidential tone of the debate.

“It’s all about what Theresa May is going to do, not what the Conservative Party or the Government is doing,” he says.

Together with his wife Helen, William Bentley has been running Bentley’s Wine Merchants in Castle Street for the past 12 years. Packed to with more than 750 fine wines, champagnes, ports, sherries and spirits, it is shops like this which give Ludlow its reputation as a magnet for bon viveurs.

He, too, says business rates are a major concern in the town, but adds that none of the parties have really tried to address this.

He declines to say how he will be voting in the election, but it is fair to say it will not be Labour.

“I think Jeremy Corbyn is a decent man, a principled man, but he would be a disaster as prime minister,” he says. “I would say that the present Labour front-bench is the worst I have seen in my lifetime, and I have been around for half a century.”

He says in a town with an ageing population, pensions and the cost of adult social care are also important issues.

“Labour has said it will keep the triple lock, while the Conservatives have said they won’t, which is against the traditional stance it has taken, which is probably pretty risky in a town like this.”

He believes people do care a lot about how their country is run, but he also believes a bit of voter fatigue is starting to set in. “I think people are starting to feel a bit electioned out, we have had to make a lot of big decisions recently,” he says.

“We have also had the council elections here a couple of weeks ago, so you have people saying ‘see you back at Bitterley village hall in a few weeks’.”

Just along the road from Bentley’s is D W Wall butchers, another independent purveyor of high-quality food for which Ludlow has become famous.

Behind the counter is butcher Simon Evans, 45, from Craven Arms, and he too says business rates are a major concern.

He says he has taken a bit of an interest in the media coverage of the campaign, but had already made up his mind about how he was going to vote.

“I am going to vote Conservative,” he says. “I have always voted for them, and I don’t see any reason to change.”

Rickard’s Ironmonger in the Bull Ring is one of Ludlow’s most venerable retailers, having been in the town since 1837. Admiring the impressive array of hardware in the shop window is semi-retired building consultant Dave Jones, 62, and his grey labradoodle Banjo. He too will be voting Conservative, although he is disappointed with the party’s U-turn on social care this week.

He says the Prime Minister should have set out her position and stuck to it, saying he believed it was right that people who had high-value properties should sell them to pay for their social care. “I don’t see why property-rich people shouldn’t expect to pay,” he says.

“I don’t see why the state should pay just so their children can have the property,” he says. Despite his disappointment with the way the Conservatives have handled the matter, Dave does not see Labour as a credible alternative. “I think if Mr Corbyn gets in it will be back to the 70s,” he says.