Next Thursday, December 15, the voters of Feltham and Heston will be the first in the country to cast their verdict on George Osborne’s latest round of cuts, more borrowing for failure, tax rises and his “forward offer” of six more years of austerity.
We’re campaigning for every vote in Feltham and Heston, urging people to use their voice at the ballot box to send a strong message to the Chancellor and Prime Minister David Cameron.
But for me, standing for Parliament is about much more than that. And it’s
about more than being the first woman to represent this constituency.
I’ve lived in Feltham almost all my life, went to school in Heston and was raised in a family that has always believed in engaging in the local community.
I’m hoping that my local experience and decades of working for equality for women – and others – has equipped me with the skills to be an effective advocate to get a fairer deal for the community in which
I grew up and which I now seek to serve as its MP. There’s something very special about fighting injustice and standing up for a better deal for the community in which you were raised.
Labour values of fairness and opportunity were instilled into me, my brother and my three sisters from an early age. I’ve always been a passionate fighter for change to make things better for those around me. Aged 10, inspired by living in an extended family with my grandmother, I stood as the Labour candidate in a mock election at Heston Junior School arguing that my classmates should vote for better pensions for the elderly. (It was the dark days of the Margaret Thatcher years and, sadly, it was the Tory 10-year-old who won). As a teenager, I organised anti-apartheid and Amnesty International events, volunteered with disabled children, campaigning to improve our local parks, and worked as a home help for elderly people.
Given the fact that we’re on the flight-path for Britain’s biggest airport, a national asset, it’s not surprising that this campaign has been dubbed “the Heathrow election”.
I know first-hand the impact that noise can make on people’s lives, but I’m also acutely aware of how much my local community relies on the thousands of jobs the international hub provides.
To me, Feltham and Heston is no ordinary place. And to have been given the chance by members of the local Labour Party to be their champion in the election to choose a new MP for our area is an enormous privilege.
But in this campaign, I’ve been listening to deep pain and anguish felt by local people as the Conservatives’ austerity plan is hurting but not working.
School children are hurting as the Tories abolish the Educational Maintenance Allowance that helped children stay on to achieve their potential in education.
Young people are hurting , with student tuition fees trebled, kicking away another ladder of opportunity.
Families are hurting, struggling to face the Tory hike in VAT and higher bills for food, petrol, gas and electricity.
Pensioners are hurting, worried about how they will keep warm this Christmas
after the Tories slashed their winter fuel allowance by up to £100.
But the Government’s policies are not working. The local dole queue is longer and the number of long-term unemployed 18 to 24-year-olds in Feltham and Heston has almost trebled since January this year – up by 147 per cent.
The people I’ve met in this campaign have made me even more determined
to fight even harder for what I know is right.
That’s why, in this election, we have a message of real hope to local people.
There is a real alternative to the policies that have so catastrophically failed.
That’s why Labour is fighting to cut VAT to kick-start the economy, build homes and create jobs.
I’m fighting hard to play my part in a more equal democracy. If I win, I’ll become the first woman MP for Feltham and Heston – and increase the number of black, Asian and minority ethnic representatives in the House of Commons.
But most of all, I’d be proud to be part of a national team to help put Labour back in office. In the early hours of next Friday, the verdict of the voters will be known.
