Dining across the divide: ‘I thought Labour would be bad. I didn’t think they’d be bad so quickly’

9 hours ago 1

Becky, 47, Brighton

Occupation Data product owner at a utilities company

Voting record Green but has voted Labour to keep the Tories out

Amuse bouche Becky’s surname, Fuego, comes from Vim Fuego, Adrian Edmondson’s character in the fictional Comic Strip heavy metal band Bad News. “When we got married, my husband changed his name, too, so we both adopted the surname Fuego”

Andy, 59, Horsham

Occupation Industrial physicist

Voting record Used to vote Labour and was a member. Left because of Corbyn and now votes Conservative

Amuse bouche Andy once, almost literally, bumped into Princess Anne at a conference. “I said, ‘Are you following me?’”

For starters

Becky We had some olives and bruschetta to start, then I had penne arrabiata. Andy and I are both from the north. I moved from Lincoln because it wasn’t as diverse and free and open as Brighton is. Andy’s kind, chatty, intelligent, a really nice person I probably wouldn’t have met otherwise.

Andy We had a bottle of primitivo. I don’t know much about wine but I went to Puglia last year and got a taste for it. I had this enormous piece of steak, which was fantastic.

Becky and Andy sitting chatting at a small table outside the front of a restaurant

The big beef

Becky I joined Labour in order to get Jeremy Corbyn in. I felt he was a positive change for Labour and for politics. I’m a Unison branch secretary, and he came and did a speech at a conference. Thousands of people followed him up the road, cheering. It really felt like this was someone who was going to change the world.

Andy I stopped supporting Labour during the Corbyn time. It seemed that the party was more focused on the professional classes, rather than their traditional, core vote. Plus the history of people he associated with – inviting supporters of Hamas to the Houses of Parliament – that’s not something I could support.

Becky I’d 100% dispute that he was a terrorist sympathiser. That’s what any reasonable person would do: get different parties around the table and talk to them like an adult. He didn’t win the election – probably because he was a bit too out there, people weren’t ready. And the media helped scare people off, portraying him as some sort of commie. If he had won, I think we would have tried to help the crisis in Gaza, the world would be a more positive place.

Andy We’ve had some pretty poor governments in the last few years, but I think he would have been really bad. Though sometimes people get into power and, as we see, they change, they don’t always do what they said in the manifesto. So who knows?

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Sharing plate

Becky I’m very disappointed in Keir Starmer’s politics, all the things he’s gone back on – environmental promises, renewable jobs, now it’s been dialled back.

Andy I said to anybody who would listen last year that Labour would be bad. I didn’t think they would be so bad so quickly.

For afters

Becky I helped to run the Brighton Greenpeace group, so I’m very much for tackling climate change. People say you can’t change things overnight. I say, look at plastic bags. You used to get one every time you bought a can of beans. Then one day they said we’re going to charge you, and everyone stopped. Net zero is a target to aim for. It’s ambitious, but if you don’t try, you’ll never know.

Andy It’s not at the top of my list of things to worry about. I can see why we’re trying to get to net zero, but if you override reality with the ideology, then you’re going to have problems, like the power cuts in Spain the other week. Ed Miliband wouldn’t know a kilowatt if it zapped through him, he has no idea.

Takeaways

Becky Never judge a book by its cover. We actually had a lot in common, he’s ex-Labour, a working-class guy disappointed in politics who’s gone over to the other side. Maybe with the right person in charge, he’d come back.

Andy I thought, you know, this is a Guardian thing, so maybe I might be the sort of pantomime villain of the piece. But it was great, I really enjoyed it. We had another bottle of primitivo and when we left the restaurant, she gave me a huge hug.