Full House of Candidates for Ealing Central and Acton
No indication at this stage of electoral pacts between parties
With the deadline for candidates to declare themselves later today (14 November), the indications are that all the major parties will be contesting the Ealing Central and Acton seat next month.
Labour's Rupa Huq won the seat in 2017 with 33,037 votes giving her nearly 60% of the vote in a constituency that she had previously held with a narrow majority.
The constituency which was formed in 2010 voted 70.85% to remain in the EU Referendum.
She launched her campaign this week at a gathering that was address by leader of the London Borough of Ealing Councillor, Julian Bell as well as Konnie Huq, former Blue Peter and sister and constituent of Rupa Huq. She spoke to the crowd describing how she first knew Julian in the 1980s as 'uncle Julian' as he was dad of her schoolfriend TV’s Angellica Bell. She also said how to her surprise after moving back to Ealing with husband Charlie Brooker she found Rupa was first Labour candidate then got elected as MP.
With canvassing well underway, Ms Huq commented, “Last time we benefited from the Ealing Green Party standing down and endorsing me as the only environmentally minded candidate able to win. I think people need to think tactically again regarding remain and be aware of how votes translate into seats. It’s important to remember that a vote for any other party will only let in Johnson’s extremist Brexit obsessed Tory party in.”
Most recently she has worked as a member of Public Administration and Constitutional Affairs Committee.
Rupa Huq
At this stage the Greens do appear to intend to stand again with Dr Kate Crossland as their candidate. In a statement announcing her candidacy, Dr Crossland stressed that Ealing was on the frontline for some of the key decisions in the country affecting climate change.
She said, “We are at the frontline of some of the key decisions on climate change in Ealing – with Heathrow, HS2 and development across the borough pushing up air pollution and challenging us to find solutions that are fair for all.”
Dr Crossland’s profile online says she is a passionate campaigner and active member of her local community, and is standing to bring the focus of this election to the climate emergency and ecological crisis. She has also authored Green Party reports into a lack of affordable housing in Ealing.
One of her reports states: “The Green Party proposes to repeal the National Planning Policy Framework and instead give power to local councils to assess, with their communities, the housing need.”
“A new developer’s duty will ensure that a greater share of the profits that are created when new homes are built goes back to the local council, to be spent on planning new council homes and accessible green spaces for the community.”
Dr Kate Crossland
Julian Gallant, the Conservative party candidate has lived in Acton since 1998 and been chairman of the Ealing Central and Acton Conservative Association since February 2015.
He said his three main priorities are Brexit, crime, and the environment.
On Brexit he said: “We must now get Brexit into the next phase, and I’m speaking as someone who campaigned and voted to remain.
“Only Conservatives can negotiate a Brexit deal that will safeguard the rights of EU nationals in the UK and British nationals in Europe.”
On Crime: “The epidemic of violent crime has hit Ealing. I sit on a local ward safety panel so I’m fully aware of the situation.
“A young man was murdered with a machete near Ealing Common on 24 September, the night I was selected nearby as the Conservative candidate.
“Therefore I support the Conservative plan to put 20,000 more police officers on the nation’s streets; I also support Shaun Bailey’s plan, as a future Conservative mayor, to engage another 800 detectives in London.”
The plan for 20,000 more police officers was criticised recently when it was revealed a large number would not be frontline staff.
On the environment, Mr Gallant said: “I will support locally the roll-out of more electric charging points for the new generation of clean vehicles.
“I will not flinch in my opposition to the expansion of Heathrow, as this will create intolerable surface and air pollution for all people in West London.
Mr Gallant is a musician by profession. His profile says he has been a trustee of Acton Charities for the last four years, helping local families with grants of household goods.
Julian Gallant
Samir Alsoodani was named as the Brexit Party candidate of August this year and describes himself on his Twitter profile as a ‘clean break’ Brexiteer. He has posted a picture of himself with candidate registration forms so Conservative hopes that he would step aside look to be misplaced.
Sonul Badiani will be representing the Liberal Democrats. Her profile on the Lib Dem’s website wastes no time, laying out her three priorities immediately. These include stopping Brexit, with Ms Badiani identifying as a “European through and through”.
She has a masters in European politics and claims to fully understands the benefits of remaining in the European Union.
Her second priority is knife crime, and her profile says she has set up a focus group to co-ordinate with local police and schools in order to tackle the problem.
Ms Badiani says this currently includes the four local Lib Dem councillors, residents, and a retired policeman, but the project has now been put on hold until after the election.
She is a critic of the Conservative’s current stop-and-search programme.
Her third objective concerns the environment. She says she is dedicated to fighting climate change and advocating for better animal protection in UK law.
Sonul Badiani
The Renew Party’s web site indicates that Zara Siddique will be representing them in the contest. She graduated from Cardiff University with a first-class honours degree in Maths and Computing. She has spoken at a number of tech conferences. An avid boxer, she won the British Universities Championship in 2018.
Zara Siddique
All candidates standing in the election must have submitted their nomination papers by 4pm on November 14. The final confirmed candidate list will be published on November 16.
The deadline for registering to vote is midnight November 26.
Written with contributions from Ged Cann - Local Democracy Reporter
November 14, 2019