Quotes from Lucy Powell

Like many of my friends and colleagues, I can't get enough of Obama news; latest polling, speeches, visits, reaction of world leaders.

In last year's local elections in Manchester a third of those who voted did so by post. It's not just that people are choosing to get postal votes, but having one makes it much more likely that they'll vote.

Indeed, when all parties campaign effectively the overall effect is to push up voting rates, as you see in tight marginal seats or close general elections. That must be good for democracy.

Over the last 10 years a huge amount has been achieved in getting people into work. Measures such as the New Deal, tax credits, the minimum wage and improved childcare have brought about record numbers of people in work, a number that is still rising despite the global economic slowdown.

The lack of available credit and loans is having a severe impact on small businesses in particular, but also their suppliers and the bigger companies too.

Surely, the best and most effective measure is to get the economy moving and shorten the period of recession or slowdown. That's the rationale for Gordon Brown's 'fiscal stimulus' and it sounds like a good one to me.

As the prospect of a Tory government gets nearer, many traditional Labour voters - some who switched away in recent times and many who stayed at home - seem more determined to prevent that happening.

For sure, the 'Obamania' that's fast taking hold reflects an incredible thirst for change in global politics and, dare I say, a wave of optimism that things can be different.

I have run a general election campaign pregnant and ran Ed Miliband's leadership campaign commuting to London with a new baby so I already have my system set up.

At its most basic the democratic contract is a simple one: the right to vote comes with a responsibility to society, through tax payments and citizenship.

Sixteen- and 17-year-olds pay taxes and can join the army, so surely they should in turn be given their right to vote.

In Scotland, the indication is that for the Westminster elections at least, Labour voters are satisfied with their government.

Being out and about talking to residents and representing their views is, in my view, as important to politics as the grandstanding that takes place in Westminster.

Even though I support the blue side of Manchester's football heritage, I don't really mind that wherever I go in the world it's not Manchester City that starts the conversation. 'Ah, yes, Manchester United,' is the response when I say where I come from. It's commonplace everywhere - in Europe, Africa, Asia and even the U.S.

Connecting people to jobs and to each other is absolutely vital to a city's economy (and to the wider economy).

Doing nothing and shrinking spending may save us public money in the short term but could cost us a great deal more over time as the recession takes hold for much longer.

Funding for sports (and the arts) are often the first things facing the chop in difficult times.

Team GB's success at the Beijing Olympics can, in part, be said to have been made in Manchester. For example, all the cycling medal winners trained at Manchester's velodrome, the National Cycling Centre.

Events are moving so fast and what in one moment seems impossible, the next is happening. I'm sure historians will, in time, provide theories and analysis, but for now I think most of us simply want the tide stemmed.

For us political activists and candidates, the morning after any election is a mix of emotions - the personal and the immediate, the culmination of your own recent campaigning efforts; and the fortunes of your party and the success or otherwise of what you stand for and believe in.

People in south Manchester overwhelming want to be able to recycle more than they currently can - especially cardboard and plastics - and want more frequent and accessible collections, particularly for those living in flats.

The era of industrial Britain, where a large section of our workforce provided cheap labour in factories and processing goods, is over.

The cost of motoring is a massive issue at the moment, there's no question. The price of petrol goes up every time you go to the petrol station.

The impact of the downturn is starting to feel very real. House prices and the housing market have been taking the knock for some time and that's affecting people.