Liberal Democrats alive and kicking in Kirklees

There was a great by-election result for Liberal Democrats yesterday in my home patch of Kirklees (named after one of the places where Robin Hood's arrow allegedly landed and he is buried, though the site is actually over the border in Calderdale)

• Christine Mary Iredale, Liberal Democrat – 1591
• Stephan Georg Jungnitz, Labour Party - 901
• Gregory Lloyd Broome, UK Independence Party (Ukip) - 450
• Daniel Edward Greenwood, Green Party - 210
• Clinton Noel Simpson, Conservative - 189

Christine lost the seat to Labour last year and admittedly we had an advantage this time round  in that that Labour man who defeated her  resigned rather prematurely.

Interesting that the Ukip vote was almost half that if Labour, and pleasing that the Green beat the Tories into fifth place.  David Cameron needs to look to his credentials and his promise to be "the greenest government ever."

Talking of promises, Tory Minister Tristram Hunt smugly made great play on the BBC's "Question Time" last night of the fact that the Tories wouldn't touch all those freebies we pensioners because because "David Cameron had promised they wouldn't."

One of the first audience contributors pointed out that Cameron has also promised "no top down re-organisation of the NHS."