Simon Hughes - Bermondsey

Bermondsey

Hughes was first elected to Parliament in the Bermondsey by-election of 24 February 1983. The by-election was described by Gay News as "the dirtiest and most notorious by-election in British political history" because of the slurs against the character of the Labour candidate and gay rights campaigner Peter Tatchell by various opposition campaigners. The Liberal Campaign leaflet described the election as "a straight choice" between Simon Hughes and the Labour candidate. Hughes won the seat with 57.7% of the vote. He apologised for the campaign in 2006, during the same few days revealing his own homosexual experiences, and confirming that he is bisexual after being outed by The Sun newspaper.

Mr Hughes told the BBC's Newsnight programme: "I hope that there will never be that sort of campaign again. I have never been comfortable about the whole of that campaign, as Peter knows, and I said that to him in the past ... Where there were things that were inappropriate or wrong, I apologise for that."

In an apparent attempt to bring the controversy over the 1983 Bermondsey byelection to a close, Peter Tatchell formally endorsed Simon Hughes for Lib Dem leader on 25 January 2006, saying: "Simon Hughes is the best of the Lib Dem leadership candidates. If I was a party member, he'd get my vote. I want to see a stronger lead on social justice and green issues. Despite his recent drift to the centre, Simon is the contender most likely to move the Liberal Democrats in a progressive direction."

In the same statement, Tatchell added: "Since his election, Simon has redeemed himself by voting for gay equality. That's all that matters now. He should be judged on his policies, not his private life."

The election result in North Southwark & Bermondsey in the 2005 general election was a poorer one for Hughes than those he had achieved in previous battles. He held the seat but the Labour Party saw a 5.9% swing in their favour—the biggest swing to Labour anywhere in the UK. When interviewed on election night television by Jeremy Paxman, Hughes suggested that the fall in his vote might reflect the unpopularity of Southwark Council, which has been controlled by the Liberal Democrats since 2002.

At the United Kingdom general election, 1983, held a matter of months after the by-election victory, the constituency had been redrawn as Southwark and Bermondsey. By the election in 1997, this has been redrawn again as North Southwark and Bermondsey, with a further change prior to the 2010 election at which the seat was titled Bermondsey and Old Southwark.