Heading west

Although it patently has not dawned on the Beans on Toast, the name announced for Lib Dem Assembly candidate for Swansea West is not the one that was widely expected.

The surprise contender is Swansea East councillor Rob Speht. He is reported to have beaten Education cabinet member Mike Day in the final vote. No surprises there as Day is widely perceived as an election liability with a reputation of being to Swansea’s schools what Genghis Khan was to community regeneration.

But the ‘shock’ revelation is that fellow Lib Dem councillor Peter May, who lost out on becoming MP for the same constituency by just 504 votes earlier this year was not even shortlisted. Admittedly, we also hear differing accounts as to whether his name went forward but his eagerness to be seen, heard and generally associated with a local health protest suggests otherwise.

An uncharitable suggestion among his critics (or more specifically, a senior local Conservative) is that May was probably unable to take advantage of his party’s innovative approach to the minimum voting age this time around. But no-one really seems to know or generally give a toss.

What is far more intriguing, to everyone except the dozy local paper, is why Speht who represents the Landore ward (on those occasions that he is in the country) and has stood as an parliamentary candidate for Swansea East in the last three successive general elections has now decided to turn his back very publicly on the constituency.