Martin Hayes: Defeating Labour in Vincent Square

Cllr Martin Hayes represents Vincent Square Ward on Westminster City Council.

At the end of February, I was delighted to win the Vincent Square Ward by-election in Westminster, the third by-election win by Westminster Conservatives since 2022 and hot on the heels of the incredible and seismic September 2024 win by Tim Barnes in the West End Ward. These wins give real substance to the belief that May 2026 will see the Conservatives win back control of the flagship Westminster Council.

Victory was achieved due to a monumental effort by the entire Westminster Conservative team, councillors and activists worked tirelessly on the campaign. We were also very fortunate to receive help from across London with special mention going to the LGBT+ Conservatives, the Conservative Women’s Organisation and Lambeth and Southwark Conservatives who really did show up time and again.

Four people went above and beyond to secure success: Cllr David Harvey and Cllr Selina Short, the two existing ward councillors who are well known for their dedication and work ethic.  Every Conservative candidate should be so lucky as to have two such fantastic colleagues who work so tirelessly on their behalf and for local people. And then there is the legendary James Cockram and Reece Fox, the best agent and campaign manager any candidate could hope to have guiding them.

Two things really helped my candidacy: firstly, the fact that I was born in the ward and had lived locally my whole life and secondly the fact that I own quite a well-known pub.  I was in the lucky position of knowing many residents and if they didn’t know me personally, they knew my pub. Being in the pub business equips a person to talk easily to people of every background or age, from retirees to eighteenth birthday celebrants, binmen to barristers, members of both houses of Parliament to painters and decorators and everything in between.

My deep-rooted and personal connection to the area also lent me an authenticity to address the biggest local issue: the lack of street safety and chronic anti-social behaviour caused by the increasing numbers of people dealing and using drugs openly. Residents across the ward are frustrated and fed up with the situation.

Vincent Square is a very diverse ward which is often overlooked. It covers beautiful historical mansion blocks around Westminster Cathedral, stunning town houses around Vincent Square itself and modern and glitzy new build apartment blocks near the Tate Gallery as well as huge housing estates that are some of the oldest social housing schemes in London, one such being the famous ‘checkerboard’ estate designed by Sir Edwin Lutyens. Vincent Square really encapsulates the diversity of Westminster as a whole.

The campaign found a lot of buyer’s remorse on the doorsteps regarding the 2022 election result. Local residents are generally quite engaged and there is, in my mind, a sense of Westminster exceptionalism. That doesn’t mean the borough was perceived as perfect, but in the beating heart of one of the world’s greatest cities, people knew things ran efficiently.  Sadly, they now experience falling standards of service and ever-increasing council tax bills. Westminster Conservatives built a brand over decades – sensible, middle of the road, caring, compassionate, efficient, limiting waste and ensuring value for money. Residents yearn for a return to those values and standards.

We won this by-election because people believed that we heard their frustrations and concerns, that we were on their side and committed to delivering safer, cleaner streets for them and their families. I am looking forward to working with my fantastic fellow Conservative Councillors to make a difference in Westminster.