PEOPLE in Wirral are set to go to the polls next month in this year’s general election with all candidates now confirmed.

Thousands of people across Wirral will cast their votes on July 4 for various parties across the borough to help elect a total of four MPs to represent them in the new Parliament following the election. Three constituencies will sit entirely within the borough governed by Wirral Council in Birkenhead, Wallasey, and Wirral West, while areas like New Ferry, Bromborough, Port Sunlight and Eastham will become part of the new Ellesmere Port and Bromborough constituency.

The general election will see the creation of a new government, with polls currently suggesting the Labour Party is on track to win a majority in Parliament. It will also be the first general election where voters are required to carry photographic ID which could see some miss out on their right to vote.

The deadline for people without an existing acceptable form of voter ID to apply online or by post for a free Voter Authority Certificate (VAC) is June 26 at 5pm. The full list of accepted ID can be found at https://www.electoralcommission.org.uk/voting-and-elections/voter-id/accepted-forms-photo-id

For those who are not registered to vote, the deadline is 11.59pm on June 18. This can be done at https://www.gov.uk/register-to-vote.

In Birkenhead, Labour will be fighting to retain the seat as its current MP Mick Whitley is standing down after losing a selection contest within the local party. Six candidates have been announced so far.

These are:

Jo Bird (Green Party)

Catherine Evans (Freedom Alliance)

Stuart Kelly (Liberal Democrats)

Alison McGovern (Labour Party)

Sarah Payne (Conservative and Unionist Party

Tony Stanley (Reform UK)

According to the first YouGov MRP poll done for the election which used data from nearly 60,000 respondents across the country, Labour is looking likely to retain the seat with an estimated 63% of the vote.

The poll also suggests the Green Party will increase its vote share gaining 13% of the vote with Reform UK on 9%, the Liberal Democrats on 6%,  and the Conservatives on 5%. Other parties would get around 3% according to the poll.

In Ellesmere Port and Bromborough, there are also six candidates standing with Labour also looking to retain the seat. The same YouGov poll suggests Labour will win with 68% of the vote and Reform UK on 11%, the Conservatives on 10%, Green Party on 7%, and Liberal Democrats on 4%.

The candidates are:

Michael Christopher Aldred (Reform UK)

Ruth Kathleen Boulton (Independent)

Christopher David Carubia (Liberal Democrats)

Lee Evans (Conservative and Unionist Party)

Harry Ross Gorman (Green Party)

Justin Madders (Labour Party)

In Wallasey, there are seven candidates standing with Angela Eagle, who has been the area’s MP since 1992, seeking re-election as the Labour Party candidate. The YouGov poll suggests Labour will win 65% of the vote with the Conservatives on 12%, Reform UK and the Green Party on 10% each and the Liberal Democrats on 3%.

The candidates are:

Philip Anthony Bimpson (Workers Party of Britain)

David Burgess-Joyce (Reform UK)

Vicky Downie (Liberal Democrats)

Angela Eagle (Labour Party)

Robbie Lammas (Conservative and Unionist Party)

Ian Pugh (Freedom Alliance)

Jane Elizabeth Turner (Green Party)

Wirral West is considered one of the more competitive races with the seat’s new boundaries now covering most of rural Wirral as well as the Woodchurch estate and towns of Greasby, Hoylake, West Kirby, and Heswall. The seat has been represented by Margaret Greenwood since 2015 but she is stepping down as MP.

The YouGov poll suggests the race will be less competitive than in previous years with Labour winning 54% of the vote and the Conservatives on 28%. Meanwhile, Reform UK get 8%, Greens on 5% and the Liberal Democrats on 4%.

Five candidates are standing. These are:

Ken Ferguson (Reform UK)

Gail Jenkinson (Green Party)

Jenny Johnson (Conservative and Unionist Party)

Matthew Patrick (Labour Party)

Peter Timothy Clifford Reisdorf (Liberal Democrats)

Information about all the different candidates standing in Wirral as well as in seats elsewhere in Merseyside and Cheshire can be found here.  All candidates have also been invited to a hustings event on climate and nature which will be held at the Wirral Met College Twelve Quays Campus on June 24.