The longlist of candidates that want to be Sheffield Central’s MP when Paul Blomfield retires at the next General Election – whenever that may be, is an interesting and diverse one. One of the names on that list is Mike Buckley.
Mike grew up in the Woodhouse area of the city, where his mum was a school teacher and his dad was a vicar. He remembers growing up in a really great community. “My experience of that was through the church, lots of people, loads of kids – big Sunday school in those days, there was regularly 50 or 60 kids there, so loads of opportunity to make friends.”
How can I make the world around me a better place?
Although at the time, Mike thought his childhood was typical, he says it was his early years that shaped much of his adult life. “With Dad being a Vicar, we were big figures in the community. That’s maybe where my childhood was slightly different to others, being a vicar is a public role. There were lots of people coming through the house, I remember occasionally other kids would make fun of me, but I never understood why – my dad’s got a job just like your dad’s got a job. In your early years, I guess your parents are your example of how a human chooses to live. There were a lot of evenings where we didn’t see dad, but that’s just the job. My dad’s not around anymore – mum still is, but I just remember them both being a force for good. Mum’s a little old lady now, and she still goes and visits other little old ladies who are sick or in hospital or she’s making a cake for someone. It’s just how can I make the world around me a better place? That’s be kind to people who are in distress or be a friend to people in need. They were my example and that’s how I choose to live as well.”
I really fell in love with being active and able to make a difference to people’s lives.
Mike studied International Politics at Birmingham University and at the age of 25 found himself heading abroad. “I didn’t grow up thinking I want to be an aid worker, when I graduated I kind of knew I wanted to do good in the world but I didn’t quite know how or where I wanted to do it. Through friends of friends, I got offered my first job in Lebanon, working for a small charity who were just starting up. I worked there for a couple of years and fell in love with the country and the language, but I really fell in love with being active and able to make a difference to people’s lives. Lebanon was a middle-income country, it’s in a worse state now than it was then sadly, but even then, there was a hell of a lot of poverty and we did what we could to change people’s lives. We gave them an education, I worked in Palestinian refugee camps teaching them English, we went down to occupied parts of the country with big trucks with relief materials and ran programmes partnered with local charities. We did a lot of work with disabled kids because there was no decent provision for them, they were just stuck at home, whereas here they’d be able to have much more normal lives. In a way, we were learning as we went but it was a massive privilege to be able to do it.”
Mike returned to the UK and got a master’s degree which allowed him to get involved with bigger organisations such as Christian Aid, then he worked in Iraq just after the war in 2003 fixing up health centres, in and around Baghdad, and in Asia just after the tsunami. He said, “Literally the whole community was nothing, It was a massive privilege being in those areas that were devastated and very dependant on what we brought.” This isn’t said in a boastful way, on the contrary. There are undoubtedly a lot of people that are still alive today that might not be were it not for the work Mike and others did, “I don’t think about it often but when I do I’m proud of that. Of course, it wasn’t all my work, but I’m very proud and very humbled that I had the opportunity to do that. I’m genuinely grateful.”
The lessons Mike learned in those years are put into perspective in today’s world, “In those days one of the big problems facing the world was AIDS, now of course it’s climate change.” He says, the system that almost always makes wealthy people wealthier, in the UK and globally, is the issue and the solutions to all that is better politics. He told me, “I did a lot of work in Syria (before the conflicts of the last decade) and Georgia. Georgia has no more natural resources than Syria, they are basically the same in terms of what they’ve got but what Georgia has, that Syria doesn’t, is a good, well-intentioned government that cares about it’s citizens. Georgia is a well-run country and incredibly prosperous compared to Syria, it’s peaceful. It’s not perfect, but they get a hell of a lot right. So I was aware then and I am now of just how important good governments are.” As a Labour candidate, Mike is keen to point out that, ”12 years ago when Labour left office, we had the highest NHS satisfaction ratings in its existence, now I don’t know the figures – but it must be awful because people can’t get a GP appointment, ambulances are not turning up on time because they have to wait for ages to drop people off at A&E.”
Recent research shared by the Financial Times estimated that 500 people are dying every week because the NHS can’t cope with demand put upon it through a lack of staff, and labour shortages, and Mike is certain it’s “because it’s been mismanaged for so long, and whether it’s doctors, nurses, or midwives, that’s a result of bad governments. I’ve seen the impact of that overseas and I see it here. If we have good government we can make Britain fairer, more prosperous, more equal, greener – all the things in the other direction to the direction they’ve going in for twelve years.”
Mike returned to the UK in 2010 and got involved in politics because he believed that was his route to having an impact in the UK. In the last decade, he has worked with refugee migration centres, fighting for rights for asylum seekers and refugees, “Particularly to try and force the Cameron government, as they did, to allow refugees into the country.”
He’s also done a lot with many different parts of the Labour party. He has worked with labour MPs and as a community organiser. To explain what that means, he says, “The most famous community organiser in the world is Barrack Obama. Obama worked as a community organiser, it’s a local – grassroots kind of politics, where you bring different people together to overcome some kind of injustice. That might be there just isn’t a school crossing, or it might be the council isn’t putting double-glazed windows in or insulating properties with loft insulation, or it could be that people are not being paid a decent wage or a living wage, or there isn’t a decent bus route between X and Y and if there were it would reduce peoples inconvenience and keep everyone safe. So I love that, bringing together people from different parts of the community who can all campaign for something that can affect them.”
Mike has also worked with the Labour party on the Living wage drive, as well as working on the campaign against payday loans, Mike described these loans as giving mini loans to people at the bottom of the pile, with exorbitant interest rates which basically tied people into debt that was unsustainable. He said, “It was evil. We won on that and got George Osbourn to make that illegal. I’ve worked with many different labour MPs that were interested in making a difference in their communities – even when labour wasn’t in power. Mike has also campaigned locally to get Labour people elected here in Sheffield and across the country, and also worked on Andy Burnham’s leadership campaign in 2015. He is still a big supporter of Burnham and says “At times I wonder what the world would have looked like if Andy had won that election. He and Sadiq (Mayor of London) are great examples of a different kind of politician. They say how can I use my role to make people’s lives better, I can’t say that the same can be said for any of the Conservative Prime Ministers we’ve had in the last 12 years.”
In the last 5 years, Mike has worked almost non-stop on Brexit. He explains, “I got into it for a lot of different reasons, I believe in people working together at a grassroots level, at a national level and at a European level. I believe in collaboration and that we achieve more when we work together. The main reason is looking at the projections of the economic impact, it’s cost us 4 or 5% of our economy. Not just in the short term, but forever – or until we change it. So London, the big economic power in the UK, their economy has been impacted 1 or 2 % worse than it would have been. Here in Sheffield, Yorkshire, the South East, Cornwall and Wales, the hit is 9 or 10%. We are a lot poorer because we’ve got the hard Brexit deal that we’ve got. You don’t see it because of course you can’t imagine the hypothetical where things are better. the hypothetical is Sheffield is thriving, there are more new businesses, there’s more buildings, more housing, more jobs, more taxpayers and more money for public services. There’s a lot in that hypothetical timeline that would be better. but we’re not there and I want to do something about that.”
Brexit is like putting sanctions on yourself. Normal countries don’t do stuff like this.
In 2018/19 Mike ran a campaign for either a 2nd referendum or the softest possible Brexit, working with senior MPs such as Keir Starmer, David Lammy, and Rachel Reeves, people who are in his words – now in the Shadow cabinet and will be in the Cabinet of the next Labour Government because together we were passionate about making this stop. He said, “We worked with all sides of the labour party. I talked to people on the left and the right because it wasn’t a right or left thing, it was a right or wrong thing. Obviously, we didn’t get the result we wanted so I now run a commission which has about 30 people from trade unions, business, journalism, and policymakers, and we’re looking sector by sector, region by region, at the impact of the Brexit arrangements that we’ve got. Its not controversial now to say that Boris Johnson did a bad thing but Boris Johnson did a bad thing – the agreements are nowhere near good enough. Most people, with the exception possibly of the current government, would acknowledge that. Certainly, Keir Starer has. We are working out how that’s impacting different sectors, in the economy, different parts of society, in health care, education, policing, and of course, particularly Northern Ireland, where it impacts them very differently in society and in the Good Friday agreement. It’s a privilege again, but it’s also about learning about a lot of really hard stuff. One of the ways I describe the impact of Brexit is this year we’ve all been talking about Russia’s war with Ukraine, and the western world has been putting sanctions on Russia; Sanctions ultimately, on their ability to trade, to make it harder for them to run their economy. Brexit is like putting sanctions on yourself. Normal countries don’t do stuff like this.
If we want our country to thrive, we’ve got to turn that around. Most importantly, are we going to be able to make the big changes we need to see to make our country fairer and more equal, to take on climate change and to get the public services we want. A significant majority probably recognise now that things haven’t worked out. We are saying we want a closer relationship with Europe. That’s not the same as saying we want another referendum, people don’t want that, and we’re not campaigning for that. What we are doing is looking at where we are and asking the question, is this where we want to stay? And if not, what do we want?”
Paul Blomfield was first narrowly elected in 2010 by just 137 votes and retained his seat in 2015 extending his majority to 17,309, a majority he extended further at the last General Election in 2019 to over 27,000. Mike acknowledges that Mr Blomfield’s shoes will be big ones to fill. He said, “Paul’s been very good as a steadfast, hardworking MP and he’s earned a lot of respect here in Sheffield and in Westminster. He’s not just got the basics right – he’s done more than get the basics right. He runs his office well, he has the right staff, he’s not tried to make himself a media celebrity and he’s been a team player in the Labour party. Those are the right things to do because it’s a team sport, not an individual route to fame and fortune. What Sheffield needs from its next MP, is someone with a very clear focus on fixing the inequalities in our city, which are now unacceptable in terms of wealth, in terms of income, but also in terms of health. Rich men in our city live 10 years longer than poor men. That’s staggering. Rich women live 7 years longer than poor women. I find that staggering. These inequalities between rich and poor and indeed between people of different ethnicities – if you come from the wrong ethnic background, you find it harder to get a decent education. The next MP for Sheffield Central needs to not just talk about these inequalities, not just say I’m going to talk about this down in London, they need to yes – talk about them in London, and when we get a labour government, but also take action here. The best MPs wake up in the morning and think how am I going to make people’s lives better in my bit of the world. Yes, some of that’s in London changing policies and laws but some of it’s here, a lot of it’s here. Particularly as a new MP, bringing people together, talking to the Mayor, talking to the council, business leaders, and charities, bringing people together and saying what resources do we have now and what changes can we make here? How do we make Sheffield more attractive to external investment? A lot of business leaders have told me the big problem is businesses are just not looking at Sheffield. They look north and they go to Manchester, they go to Liverpool. That’s borne out by the data that shows our economy is doing significantly less well than Leeds, Manchester and Liverpool and we shouldn’t be. We should be one of the four big cities of this bit of the north. You can sense that when you get off the train in Leeds or Manchester, their city centres are buzzing and vibrant, there are shops and restaurants and bars and you get to Sheffield city centre and it’s all just quiet. It makes people feel sad. Many of the business leaders I’ve spoken to want to work more closely with our city. They recognise the need and the responsibility but they cant do it on their own. They need to work with the Mayor, the council, and the MP. I’ve had similar conversations with people in the third sector, who said the same thing. While most of the work I’ve done extensively has been overseas, the context is different but it’s exactly the same principle.
That wasn’t just us turning up as aid agencies and saying right, here’s us. The only way to make change is to work with the communities to pool all the resources. In the end, its about leadership.
If I’m selected as candidate – in theory, there’s two years before the election. In those two years, I’d have the luxury of having two years to get to know this constituency, like the back of my hand. I already know a lot of people, I talk to a lot of people already but there are a lot of businesses I haven’t spoken with, a lot of charities, a lot of people who are having a hard time I haven’t spoken to. There’s a lot of people who are having a great time, and who want to make Sheffield a fairer, greener and more equal place, that I haven’t spoken to. I would spend that time building a plan, convening people, doing what we can in the interim, but also, preparing for that moment that I’m elected as the MP and we’ve got more opportunities, a bigger voice, working out what I can do on day one to improve lives here in Sheffield central. I’d also be out and about campaigning in marginal seats to make sure we can get that Labour government with the biggest majority possible. On day one as an MP, the first thing I’d do would be breath a sigh of relief that we’ve got a labour government, but then the inequality, getting our economy back on track, and like Leeds, Liverpool and Manchester as a starting point, we’ve got to see a more vibrant city centre. The priority for me would come down to bringing down those health inequalities, making sure this city is getting the basics right in terms of healthcare, social care, childcare, pensioners, taking care of the most vulnerable, making sure we end the racial inequality in the city, turning around those inequalities, but then it’s also basics like we need to build more homes. We’ve got to bring our carbon emissions down and get more jobs, better jobs, and better-paid jobs. In part, we are losing too many students. We educate 70,00 young people a year here, which is amazing. We have two amazing universities and what a wonderful asset to have here in Sheffield, but a lot of them, they finish their education and want to stay here because it’s a great place but they can’t do it, because the jobs aren’t here. We need the careers for those young people to come into. Population 2022/23 coming out. The population of Leeds is up 6% in the last 10 years, and Sheffield grew 0.6% in the last ten years.
Whether it’s Manor Castle or Fulwood the needs are similar while at the same time some of the causes are different.
The longlist of candidates, like the city itself, is a very diverse one. Sheffield Central constituency is just as diverse, covering areas like Manor, Broomhill, Sharrow and Fulwood. I asked Mike how he would engage those quite different areas within the city and bring those communities together. He said, “I’ve spent time within all of those communities, very purposefully in the last year, and in the end, a lot of the needs are the same, everyone needs a decent home, everyone needs a job, everyone needs their kids educated, so while those are very different areas, in some ways the needs are the same and the complaints are the same – our kids can’t get a home, they can’t get jobs or education and apprenticeships, or the career that they want, there’s too much crime, we’re overlooked by the national government, nothing’s changed in decades. Whether it’s Manor Castle or Fulwood the needs are similar while at the same time some of the causes are different. There is sadly institutional racism, and some people just making the wrong choices, there are areas, and Manor may be one of them that has effectively just been written off by the national government as a problem that’s too hard to fix. I’m angry about those things as much as anything else.”
In light of recent controversies surrounding Government, Mike accepts that there is a trust issue facing politicians. He thinks “The way to fix that is to make myself accessible and transparent. I will of course turn up at constituency meetings, and talk to people and members, but most people in Sheffield can’t come to that so I will also do regular – at least quarterly, question times for anyone in the constituency to come to sit in a big room and ask me questions and I’ll be on radio Sheffield as often as I can. I’ll keep updating social media and the website but I don’t want to just concentrate on social media, I want to make myself available. The only way people will trust me is if they can interact with me, or at least hear me interact with someone else on the radio. I also want to bring different communities, particularly community leaders, whether that’s faith leaders or charity leaders, business leaders, or political leaders from different parts of the constituency together so we can all talk. I’d start this even as the candidate, bring in the council, and the leaders and say this is our home, we have a shared interest in making this a better to live and we have a shared responsibility to make this a better place to live. The MP has a massive opportunity to do that because there aren’t many other people – people have busy lives, there might be one group over there trying to fix this and that group over there trying to fix that, imagine what we can achieve if I bring them all together. The best MPs do that.
I’m very pleased that the longlist is so diverse. I think it reflects well on the party, and on Sheffield’s central labour party. I think it’s right that we want our politicians to be reflective of society. Even though I disagree with the new Prime Minister on almost everything politically, I think it’s right that we celebrate that we have our first non-white PM. It says a great thing about us as a country, that A; it’s happened, and B; it’s not an issue or certainly I haven’t had a conversation with anyone that has an issue with it. The decision in Sheffield central is the member’s choice to make, they will decide who their next MP is, all I can do is put myself forward and say this is who I am, this is my experience, and this will be my approach. For me, the key question is who is going to make the most difference to people’s lives and who is most able to do that and who has a plan to do that.”
Jason Holyhead 
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