Labour candidate for Havant said borough has been '˜lacking leadership' under Tory rule

And Graham Giles, Labour candidate for the borough, said if Tory candidate Alan Mak were to be re-elected, the area would continue to suffer.

But Tory candidate Mr Mak said Labour are irrelevant in the borough.

He said: ‘Mr Mak is a man who has nothing to show for the last two years, apart from a photo album.

‘Those aren’t my words, they’re the words of people in his core areas who are angry and frustrated at him because he’s totally ineffective.

‘He has a complete lack of understanding about the things that matter to the people of Havant.

‘I mean, what are we going to do about our coastal defences, our cycle paths, our energy?

‘I’ve written feasibility studies on all of these issues.’

Mr Giles, 60, stood for the parliamentary seat in the 2015 election.

He added: ‘We’ve got pockets of opportunity here but to make the most of that we need the leadership which this area has been utterly lacking.

‘We as a party are very optimistic, we’re being very well-received in areas where previously we wouldn’t have been.

‘We’ve had very good debates on Hayling Island, and at Warblington School and for me it was the turning of the tide. To get a rapturous applause was great, I was passionate when I spoke because I believe in what I’m doing and I want to represent the people of Havant.

But Mr Mak fought back, and said: ‘Labour is irrelevant in the area.

‘The Tories are the party that truly represent local residents, as the Hampshire County Council elections showed when we won every seat.

‘Over the last two years I’ve been a hard-working focused MP. I’ve put on two job fairs which have helped residents looking for work, an older person information fair which attracted more than 1,000 people, and I’ve got a very strong track record.

‘I hope they will endorse me today.