Greens to stand in marginal Hampstead & Kilburn unless reciprocal agreement reached with Labour

Tulip Siddiq, Dee Searle (Chair) and John Mansook at last night's meeting

Following a meeting of Brent and Camden Green parties in Kilburn on Monday 8^th May, Green Party members in Hampstead & Kilburn have voted that the prospective parliamentary candidate John Mansook will stand in the constituency in the upcoming General Election, rather than stand down and pursue a local electoral alliance. 

Brent and Camden Green parties would like to thank Labour’s incumbent Tulip Siddiq for coming to speak at the meeting, which was conducted respectfully at all times. In particular, they would like to commend her efforts to persuade Labour’s National Executive Committee to stand aside for the Greens in Brighton Pavilion and the Isle of Wight, and her voting record on key Green issues including resistance to fracking, renewal of Trident and HS2.

However, Labour’s lack of willingness to enter into electoral alliances with the Green Party in constituencies where the Greens have a better chance of winning – particularly Brighton Pavilion and the Isle of Wight – was a key factor in the vote. This followed new advice not to stand aside from the Green Party leadership unless Labour was prepared to withdraw in these constituencies. Members did add a condition that keeps an option open for standing aside in Hampstead & Kilburn if there is movement from Labour on electoral alliances nationally before a deadline of 12pm, Wednesday 10 May.

Hampstead & Kilburn Green Party candidate John Mansook said:

Any electoral alliance needs to be a true alliance, not a one way street. Sadly there hasn’t been any movement towards this from the Labour Party nationally. While we are very grateful to Tulip for coming to speak to us and advocating electoral alliances publicly in recent days, any decision to stand aside would have been very difficult knowing Labour are not likely to reciprocate. One of the Green Party’s key platforms in the upcoming campaign will be to change our unfair voting system, so that discussions like this are unnecessary and people can vote for what they believe in.

Camden Green Party co-Chair John Holmes said:

Brent and Camden Green Parties have selected an excellent local candidate in John Mansook, who is deeply connected with many of the issues facing residents of Hampstead and Kilburn. Voters deserve the option of being able to vote for him and for the Green Party’s unique policies, including a commitment to reverse privatisation in the NHS and measures that will dramatically cut Britain’s contribution to climate change. We can only deprive voters of that opportunity if Labour works with us to increase our Green voice in Parliament.

This is the resolution passed last night:

The members of the Brent and Camden Green parties living in the Hampstead and Kilburn constituency resolve:

1) To publicly thank Tulip Siddiq for meeting the parties, for the efforts she has made to secure a progressive alliance for the 2017 General Election and the undertakings she has made to work for a progressive alliance in future
2) With regret, unless the Labour Party agrees to the reasonable demands of the Green Party nationally to withdraw the Labour candidates in Brighton and the Isle of Wight by noon on Wednesday 10^th May, we will submit our nomination for John Mansook to be our candidate.
3) If an agreement is reached nationally, the election agent is instructed not to submit our candidate’s nomination.

Is an electoral alliance to beat the Tories possible in Hampstead and Kilburn?

 Above from Electoral Calculus website LINK the ward prediction is based on estimates the working for which can be found HERE

Green Party members in Hampstead & Kilburn have mandated an approach to Hampstead & Kilburn's current Labour MP, Tulip Siddiq, with a view to a possible electoral alliance, given her narrow majority and Parliamentary voting record on important Green issues such as opposing Brexit and opposing the renewal of Trident LINK.

The Hampstead and Kilburn Constituency covers 7 wards in Camden and three in Brent. Brent wards are Brondesbury Park, Kilburn and Queens Park.
 
Green Party members will ask Tulip Siddiq for support and commitments on key Green issues in order to consider withdrawing their Hampstead & Kilburn candidate, including but not limited to:

• Campaigning for electoral reform and proportional representation for Westminster.
• Lobbying Brent and Camden Councils for divestment of their pension funds from fossil fuels.
• Urging leader the Labour leader and Labour colleagues to support electoral alliances where appropriate, in particular to stand down and support Green candidates in the Isle of Wight and Brighton Pavilion.
• Regular contact after the election with Green Party members.

Tulip Siddiq has been invited to speak at a Green Party meeting of local members that will take place next week. At this meeting a final decision will be put to Green Party members for a vote.
 
The Greens will also contact the Liberal Democrats in Hampstead & Kilburn with a view to them joining any electoral alliance.
 
John Holmes, Co-Chair of Camden Green Party, explained:

There are a variety of views within Brent and Camden Green Parties on the issue of electoral alliances, and we've had a very healthy debate. We've a terrific Hampstead & Kilburn candidate in John Mansook, and so any decision to stand down won't be taken lightly. We've created a process whereby Green Party members get a say on any final decision, and they will want commitments from Tulip on key Green issues in order to make this a true alliance.

Despite opposition from their respective leaderships Labour and Liberal Democrat members have reached electoral agreements in several constituencies where the non-Tory vote combined would beat Conservatives. UKIP have withdrawn in favour of Brexit Tories in a 'regressive alliance'.

Brent Green Party adopted the following position at their own meeting prior to the joint meeting which selected John Mansook, their Chair, as  Green Party candidate for Hampstead and Kilburn:

Our principled position is that we stand a candidate.  We believe that Green voters are entitled to have the opportunity to vote for their party of choice and a Green General Election campaign will help us build support in our strongest wards for the May 2018 Council elections when we  hope our first Green councillors will be elected. We recognise that some Green voters, faced with the prospect of another Conservative government will none the less make a tactical decision to vote Labour.

Tulip Siddiq signed a letter to the Guardian on Monday calling for the Labour party to stand aside of Brighton Pavilion and the Isle of Wight:

With the progressive vote split, the danger of a Tory landslide and all it means for our country now looms darkly on June 8. It is therefore important to maximise progressive votes and campaigning in some key seats.

She told the Camden New Journal LINK:

It can’t be denied that Caroline Lucas has been a good MP, and I’ve worked with her on several issues including lowering the voting age to 16.

Note: My personal comment would be that there is a danger of voters thinking that electoral alliance deals are a 'fix' by the political parties which are made without reference to them, and that they themselves can make their own tactical voting decisions in constituencies where the parties are finely balanced.

Tune in to a Greener future tonight on K2K Radio and question Brent Green GE2017 candidates

John Mansook (Hampstead & Kilburn)

Brent Green Party General Election candidates are not hiding away and refusing to answer questions, instead Shaka Lish (Brent Central) and John Mansook (Hampstead & Kilburn) will be on Kilburn to Kensal Radio tonight on 'Park and Rise' compered by Gemma Dempsey.

Shaka Lish (Brent Central)

They will answer questions sent in by listeners. Tune in HERE at 6pm and send questions by tweeting @ecdeep or @kensaltokilburn on Twitter or post on Kilburn To Kensal Facebook 

Brent Green Party reveals its General Election candidates

Shaka Lish, Green Party candidate for Brent Central

Shaka Lish has been selected to challenge Dawn Butler in Brent Central:

I am a life long Brent resident, conceived in Harlesden, born in Kilburn, grew up in Queens Park and now reside in Willesden. I wasn’t always political but like many, after the Iraq war I was left with so many questions about politics in the UK. Questions like, what makes democracy work for the people, not just the powerful? Since then, I have become more engaged with issues that I am passionate about and also more informed.

Since the global crash in 2008, there has been a change in the world. What appeared at first as an opportunity to change the way we are living – address climate change, inequality and neoliberalism – has actually appeared tighten the grip of disaster capitalism.

There comes a time when we have to stand up to be counted and take part in effecting the change that we wish to see in this world. By standing for the Green Party I believe I am doing just that. The local, to the national, to the global, are all intimately interconnected. We begin locally but this inevitably has echoes further afield.

I have been a professional singer pursuing a career in music since leaving school and been lucky enough to make music, travel the world and share my creativity on a platform. Although I still make music, I have nurtured another passion - for social justice and for helping others.

I recently became a mature student and finished an undergraduate degree in Philosophy, Politics and History and currently I am finishing an MA in Traditions of Yoga and Meditation, at SOAS. Being lucky enough to get a grant to study, I know how enriching education is, so I am adamant tuition fees should be scrapped and that we should not create barriers to knowledge through eye-watering debt. Education is a social good for all.

My undergraduate dissertation was on the subject of climate change and it has been frustrating to watch how science has led the way but unfortunately our leaders have been slow to act. My priority would be to hold the government to account and to keep campaigning for investment in green initiatives, transport and technology.

I am passionate about community, the environment, equality, the NHS, animals and education. I often feel so inspired by what could be possible, how the country can be transformed for the good of all, not just the few. I see a country where we have clean air, renewable energy, we look after our environment, we care for the vulnerable, have meaningful and secure work and where everyone gets the opportunity to thrive and fulfill their potential. I know this is possible but I also know it can only be achieved together.

My local campaign would focus around these areas –

• Put pressure on the council to make commercial recycling mandatory, not optional.
• Campaign for more local cycling hangers – and for this to feed into a more coherent transport policy.
• Push for procurement of local land for community resources such as youth activities and allotments
• Create a plan that gives locals more power to decide on their dominant energy sources and scrap any disincentives to renewables.
• Strive for any new developments in Brent to be accompanied by appropriate services to sustain the growing population of residents – such as medical care, childcare, community resources and activities. Not just shopping facilities.

The opportunity to stand as an MP is humbling as it is a service to my community. Brent is a community that has given me opportunities and support and I would be proud to stand as a Green Party representative and spread the message to make sure people know, a better world is possible.

Email: shaka.lish@greenparty.org.uk

Michaela Lichten, Green Party candidate for Brent North

 Michaela Lichten has been selected to challenge Barry Gardiner in Brent North:

I’ve been a resident of Brent for over 30 years and am passionate about the built and natural environment.

So much of society is weighted against ordinary people and with the crisis in Housing and Education worsening, new and innovative solutions need to be found to halt further inequalities.

With Brexit now triggered The Green Party can ensure we don’t stop being Europeans. I’m proud to stand for The Green Party which has long been a feminist party, with policies including improved maternity services, quotas for women on boards and working with organisations to advance women's equality and employment opportunities.

I’d strive to be a good constituency MP concentrating on local issues such as housing, schools, open spaces, pollution and the provision of good quality care for the elderly that doesn’t solely rely on the, often unpaid, contribution of the families of those effected. I’d work to provide better support for carers.

There are around seven million carers in the UK with 700,000 being under 18; I’d work to ensure that young carers and young adult carers are given vital support throughout their education. Having been a carer myself, for my husband who suffers from Alzheimer’s, I identify with the many carers that are over 65 and struggling with their own health issues and who deserve better support.I

believe that it’s the duty of MPs to listen to, and be reachable by, the constituents that elect them. If elected I will work to raise the concerns of Brent residents with relevant Ministers ensuring a local influence at Westminster.

email: michaela.lichten@greenparty.org.uk

tweet: @michaelalichten

John Mansook, Green Party candidate for Hampstead and Kilburn

 John Mansook has been selected by Brent and Camden Green Parties to challenge Tulip Siddiq in Hampstead and Kilburn

I have lived in Brent all my life and I am also active in my community raising awareness and giving advice to residents. I believe because of my occupational and life experience I am able to identify and communicate with younger voters in Brent.

I am aware of the issues such as poor health, pollution, crime, cuts to youth services and lack of affordable housing all of which affect the quality of life of all residents in Brent especially the next generation. My daily exposure to different groups such as elderly and disabled people has allowed me to gain a deep understanding of the impact cuts to funding has had on the quality of life for the most vulnerable society. This awareness has motivated and mobilised me into action.

I am a diabetes community champion and I attend community events to raise awareness about diabetes and to educate the citizens of Brent on health and wellbeing. I have also previously volunteered in Camden working with the Leighton Project as a swim buddy which helped disabled young adults overcome their fear of water and become self- confident in water and ultimately learn how to swim. I have also volunteered in Camden on health and activity awareness days promoting health and wellbeing within the Borough.