The once bustling UK town ‘crushed’ as Labour ‘sleepwalks into killing it’ | UK | News
Once vibrant English town ‘crushed’ as Labor ‘sleepwalking to kill’ (Image: Getty)
A town that is a major player in British manufacturing is being crushed under Labour, locals say. Redditch was the kind of place Labor promised to reward by pledging to support hard-working people in its election campaign.
But over the past few months unemployment has risen faster than anywhere else in the UK town of 80,000. Redditch had a strong employment market before Labor’s victory, with only 2.5% of residents unemployed. That’s about one in 40 people. However, it rose to 5.6% in the year to September 2025, above the national rate. Local businesses say Labor has crippled the manufacturing sector after Rachel Reeves’ budget coup last year.
Redditch is known as a manufacturing city (Image: Getty)
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James Leng, boss of manufacturing company Pre-Met, said a dozen similar businesses around Redditch had gone into administration in the last 18 months.
“The government is sleepwalking through an industry and then wondering why they can’t produce the most basic metal components used in the most basic products,” he said. Telegram.
“If it continues like this, Redditch will continue to be at the forefront of rising unemployment.”
The company employs around 55 staff and ships metal components for trains, planes and fuses around the world.
He said that when Rachel Reeves announced increases to the minimum wage and employer National Insurance contributions, costs rose overnight by around £60,000 to £70,000 “as a direct result of the budget”, the equivalent of the cost of two employees.
He said the team was often inundated with calls from recruiters looking to hire people laid off from nearby businesses, but he couldn’t hire himself. Luckily, he managed to avoid layoffs.
Redditch once produced 90% of all needles (Image: Getty)
Stores were also closed in the city centre. Just last month, Smiggle’s last trading day occurred on February 22. The Cancer Research UK store in Redditch has also decided to close.
Local people told the Telegraph about their never-ending job search, explaining how they applied for dozens of jobs for months and got no results.
The Old Needlework Trust in Redditch, which offers support to people who are struggling, said its food bank was becoming increasingly busy.
“More and more unemployed people are coming through the door. It’s a mix of people. There have been redundancies,” manager Louise Potter said.
Reddich will be an important marginal seat in the upcoming election. It was under Labor control from its founding in 1997 until the Conservatives took over in 2010.
Labor took it back by just 800 votes in 2024; but he is now a key target for Nigel Farage’s party. According to the Electoral Calculus, Reform UK has an 86% chance of winning the next vote.
