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“It's an unmitigated disaster,” Liberal Democrat George Turner says of Brexit. “People might not agree with some of the EU’s decisions but it seems to me that to tear down the whole structure is very foolish indeed.”

It’s precisely this position that Turner hopes will help him in the daunting task of overturning a 12,700 Labour majority in Vauxhall, one of the party’s London strongholds.

As challenging as that sounds, he will doubtless be aided by the area’s paradoxical political make-up. Though incumbent MP Kate Hoey campaigned enthusiastically alongside Nigel Farage and other Leave advocates before the EU referendum, 78 per cent of her constituents rejected Brexit, marking Lambeth out as London’s most pro-European borough.

Already in the fledgling campaign the fight has turned ugly thanks to a bizarre incident which saw Turner airbrushed from a photograph shared by Hoey on Twitter of an air pollution protest. Turner reacted furiously, likening the incident to “Stalinism” and accusing Hoey of indulging in the tactics of the US “alt-Right”.

In another sign that the contest could turn dirty, Turner’s supporters circulated a poster depicting Hoey’s face split with Nigel Farage’s — a wholly unsubtle reference to her stance on Brexit. Turner, who was born in Croatia, brought up in London, and spent a spell living in the US, hopes the message behind the image will resonate with disillusioned voters.

He is one of several Lib-Dem hopefuls in the capital planning to capitalise on Brexit — though he acknowledges that overturning Hoey’s majority is a tall order. “There’ll always be a hardcore tribe of people who will vote Labour whatever the situation,” he says. “I don’t expect Kate Hoey to lose her deposit in this election, even though she certainly doesn’t agree with many of the values of her own party.”

Vauxhall 2015 MP: Kate Hoey Party: Labour Majority: 12,700

Speaking of the constituency’s voters — and their pro-European voting habits — the 34-year-old says: “Their MP has failed them so much on this one issue. It’s not so much that Kate voted to leave, it’s the way she aggressively rejects any sort of compromise with the Remain constituency and sticks with the attitude that these people are traitors. People in Lambeth find that deeply offensive.”

But what would his priorities be if he were to pull off what would rank as one of the biggest upsets of the general election?

He singles out air quality as one of the area’s most pressing issues — but can’t quite bring himself to talk about it in terms which don’t involve the EU. “We have some of the most polluted roads in the country in Lambeth. Had the UK not been subject to European environmental legislation… nothing would be done whatsoever. Once we leave these institutions which act as a kind of enforcement mechanism, who is going to be there to protect people from air pollution?”

Turner, who rents a “one-and-a-half” bedroom flat with his wife Maddy and their three-month-old daughter Xenia, also highlights housing as a priority if he wins on June 8.

“Housing is the big issue. What we’ve got in Vauxhall is a lot of inappropriate housing — luxury high-rise tower blocks. The need is for lower cost, family accommodation for people who work in central London.”

But despite speaking passionately about such issues, it’s hard to escape the conclusion that Turner sees the fact that he is not Hoey as his most saleable attribute. Indeed, he even boasts of having Labour activists quit their party to campaign for him after being galvanised by his pro-EU stance.

I venture to suggest that his fight against Hoey may well prove to be a dirty one. “All we’re going to do is hold her to account for her actions,” he says. “She may find she doesn’t like that, but it was her choice to make those decisions”.

Whether his focus on Brexit during the campaign will be enough for him to pull off the upset of the election remains to be seen. Hoey’s name recognition in the area — unlike Turner’s — is strong, and she has a reputation among voters as someone who is a responsive and hard-working constituency MP.

If Turner manages to unseat her it would send a serious message about the type of Brexit Londoners want — and Labour’s capacity to offer it to them.