Labour to focus on ‘blue wall’ seats as it kicks off byelection drive

Shadow chancellor to highlight increased mortgage costs as party targets Tory seats coveted by Lib Dems

Labour is to kick off campaigning in a string of upcoming byelections by highlighting increased mortgage costs in so-called blue wall constituencies, in a tactical shift in which the party will openly target Conservative-held seats coveted by the Liberal Democrats.

Rachel Reeves, the shadow chancellor, is to visit Kingswood, the constituency vacated by Chris Skidmore, the Conservative who quit as an MP last week in protest at the government's planned new rounds of oil and gas licences.