West Lothian voters accuse parties of 'rolling back on commitments' ahead of poll

In anticipation of the general election on July 4, Edinburgh Live caught up with Bathgate and Linlithgow constituents on Linlithgow’s high street.

Voters shared their most important issues and opinions of party leaders ahead of the first UK election since 2019.

Several Linlithgow residents voiced that climate change was high on their docket of priorities for the upcoming poll.

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Susan, 57, said: “It’s extremely important to everybody, it’s our collective future we’re talking about. Both parties have rolled back on commitments, which concerns me.”

Cathy, a climate activist with Christian Climate Action, said she has been regularly attending hustings in Falkirk.

Although she also cited the health service and the cost of living as major issues, she said: “My main concern is the climate. We need to see politicians make change.”

Other residents were vocal about the need for National Health Service reform.

Linda, 56, an NHS nurse, shared that her niece is a doctor and has been overwhelmed by chronic underfunding and understaffing.

She said: “They’ve expanded her work so she’s in a village where there aren’t enough doctors for all the residents. It’s not fair at all to the health providers.”

When asked to describe Rishi Sunak, some residents had choice words for the Prime Minister.

One voter simply said: “I think he’s a bit of an a***hole.” Others described him as “failing”, “slippery”, and “privileged”.

Susan said: “I think he’s desperate. He can see the Tories are about to have a calamitous result in the election, so he’s throwing out ever more crazy policies just to grab headlines.”

However, some residents shared more forgiving assessments of the Tory leader.

Couple Colin, 54, and Linda, 56, felt that Sunak was “competent and intelligent,” and that he is a “nice enough man who cares about the country.”

Opinions of Keir Starmer were similarly a mixed bag, with some residents saying the Labour leader “lacks integrity” and is “always changing his mind,” while others called him “trustworthy” and “consistent”.

Elaine, 50, said the opposition leader had “integrity”, but was “a bit unknown” and was skeptical of his ability to effect change.

She continued: “I think he cares about people, but I’ve not seen him in action very much.”

Kenny, 64, was apathetic about the state of politics in the UK, citing the “trustworthiness” of politicians as a main issue and lamenting that Starmer had “gone back on some of his commitments”.

He said: “I think a lot of folks are disaffected with the political scene. Post-covid, I don’t think politicians have had a high level of trust from society, full stop.”

The Bathgate and Linlithgow constituency includes Armadale, Bo’ness, Blackburn, Whitburn, Bathgate, and Linlithgow.

The full list of candidates standing in the Bathgate and Linlithgow constituency are listed below:

• Martyn Day, Scottish National Party

• John Hannah, Independence for Scotland Party

• Simon Jay, Scottish Green Party

• Stuart James McArthur, Independent

• Jamie McNamee, Reform UK

• Lynn Munro, Conservative and Unionist Party

• Sally Pattle, Liberal Democrats

• Kirsteen Sullivan, Labour and Co-operative Party

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