News | Politics

General election constituency focus: Brent Central

 
Pounding the pavement: Labour’s Dawn Butler with two constituents in Willesden
Kiran Randhawa
29 April 2015

A political scandal is likely to leave even the most fervent of voters disillusioned — and the constituents of Brent Central have had their fair share.

So, as the countdown to May 7 begins in this multicultural pocket of north-west London, the candidates are taking nothing for granted.

Lauren Keith has stepped in as Lib-Dem candidate after the party’s sitting MP, Sarah Teather, announced she was stepping down.

The 30-year-old’s appointment was last-minute after the first Lib-Dem candidate, Ibrahim Taguri, quit last month over allegations of accepting a potentially illegal donation.

In the red corner is political heavyweight Dawn Butler, herself no stranger to controversy after being caught up in the 2009 MPs expenses scandal. Both women are knocking on as many doors as possible, hoping to find the undecideds who could change their fate.

Miss Keith, who stood as a councillor twice but lost both times, admits she has a job on her hands to keep the party’s seat. Last June’s poll by Lord Ashcroft put Labour in the lead with 54 per cent of the vote and Lib-Dems in second place with 19 per cent.

As she canvasses residents in Temple Road, Cricklewood, she tells one: “It’s going to be tough but I’m just going to go full pelt at it.”

Her buzzword is housing. She openly tells constituents she is unable to get on to the property ladder.

“The biggest issue for me is housing, I’m 30, I earn a decent wage and I can’t afford to buy,” she tells a voter. Her sincere approach is welcomed by the resident who announced he was not voting when he first opened the door, but as she turned to leave, he shouted: “Actually I might just give you a vote.”

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Another chats to her in the street and halfway through the conversation, he stands open-mouthed when she reveals she is one of the area’s parliamentary candidates.

Maybe because she looks too young, or possibly because she does not fit the mould. She adds: “I’m not a polished politician and I’m never going to be that person. If you’re in politics you should have things to say about the real world and be a bit more in touch with what problems real people are facing.”

The seat covers one of the most deprived and ethnically diverse areas of the country.

Cricklewood lies in its east. South of there is the more affluent and gentrified Kensal Green, which borders the more deprived areas of Stonebridge and Harlesden. To the west is Wembley Stadium and to the north is Dollis Hill.

The seat, also being fought for by the Greens’ deputy leader Shahrar Ali and Tory candidate and former local councillor Dr Alan Mendoza, has the biggest Irish and Jamaican communities of any London constituency.

Labour’s Ms Butler says she and her team have doorstepped 41,000 constituents and aim to get to 4,000 more before election day.

The 45-year-old has her trainers on as she hits the mixed voter area of Willesden.

“I’ve spent three years campaigning, it’s cost me two pairs of shoes so far,” she says as she doorsteps residents on Sandringham Road.

Some of the constituents are already treating her like their MP, explaining local concerns. Vincent Andrada, 21, a student, tells Ms Butler Labour’s stance on reducing tuition fees resonates with him, but he would like her to fix issues in local Gladstone Park.

“I would like to see night lights on the basketball court,” he says. “Me and my friends go there a lot and it would be nice to see some improvements here in my local area.”

Another resident, Mohan Gadher, 63, an accounts assistant, told her: “There are a lot of youngsters in the area causing a bit of trouble. This anti-social behaviour has got worse over the last four to five years. This is something we need to stop, we need help with that.”

THE former Brent South MP stood in Brent Central in 2010 when she lost to Ms Teather by 1,345 votes.

Her campaign was tainted when opponents criticised her for claiming thousands of pounds for a second London home despite having one within 10 miles of Westminster. She says she was exonerated and, following an investigation, she did not have to pay any money back.

Her big campaign issue is the NHS. “When my father was in hospital before he died, I witnessed nurses talking about what they were going to do next, worrying about their jobs, and mistakes were made,” she said.

Talking about the closure of the A&E at Central Middlesex Hospital, she added: “If you live near that hospital and you’re sick and dying, you have to fork out £30 to get a taxi to the next closest A&E. That’s if you can even afford the fare.

“Somebody needs to stick up for people in Brent and that’s what I’m doing.”