A financier, a photographer and a doctor explain why they’ll respectively choose the Conservatives, the Liberal Democrats and Labour today
Financier Zachary Latif on why he’ll vote for the Conservative Party
Brexit is the primary question
Firstly, this election was called on the issue of Brexit and when voters go to the polls, the primary question is whom do they want as their chief negotiator to deal with Europe: Will it be Theresa May or will it be Jeremy Corbyn? It is incontrovertible that Theresa May, a lady with a sensible and steady pair of hands, is the one to captain the ship. When I compare her approach to the untried and untested Jeremy Corbyn, I know without a shadow of doubt that I want Theresa May and her team to be leading Brexit.
Making Britain prosperous
The economy will go through a very shaky time over the next five years and we need a party that has the economic expertise that can guide us through these rocky waters. We all remember the last terrible time under Labour when the treasury was literally left with no money. Britain, now, under the Tories, has low unemployment, a balanced budget and ambitious plans for economic growth. If you want a prosperous Britain then it can only be for the blues.
Multiculturalism and being proud to be British
The cult of multiculturalism, as Angela Merkel touched on a few years ago, has failed. We need a Britain that revolves around the Union, a bicameral Parliament, the Crown and an understanding of the strong role that the Church (Anglicanism South of the Wall and Presbyterianism North of the Wall) plays. We need a government that is able to both manage the world outside but also be able to stand up for Britain and this precious Union of Nation, as Theresa May puts it. Jeremy Corbyn is a revolutionary but has no instinct for British patriotism – as his extensive links with the IRA testify. The Conservative Party is the only major party that makes one feel proud to be British and also able to retain a global outlook.
Cambridge based Zachary Latif is a founder of Raef LLC, a high yield investment firm. He has appeared as a guest host on CNBC several times and is also an actor and playwright.
Photographer James Smith on why he’ll vote for the Liberal Democrats
Corbyn is the tail shaking the Labour dog
I’m a centrist and believe government should work for all rather than guarding the wealth or indulging the politics of envy. By pulling his party to the hard left, Corbyn and his army in the wings have allowed May to become more right wing. How dare he and how dare she abandon the middle. Corbyn has alienated so many of his more reasonable party members that only the dregs will serve with him on the front benches. Corbyn may be a great campaigner but he’s been a lazy politician in opposition and seems bored when he’s not absorbing the energy of an adoring crowd. Remind you of anyone?
The Liberal Democrats punched above their weight in the coalition
I thought the coalition government was a grown-up union born of necessity. Neither party could fall back to their comfort zones, they had to work together to deal with a dire situation. For the most part, both sides did well but the Lib Dems suffered because of lazy accusations of betrayal by their core voters. To me they’ve proven they’re grown-ups. They’re honest that there’s no magic money tree and we’ll all need to pay for the NHS and social care through higher income tax. The idea of a Labour-SNP pact would be the worst of all worlds: Bye bye UK.
The Liberal Democrats could help facilitate a more sensible Brexit
While I won’t be celebrating a Labour or a Conservative victory, Jeremy Corbyn would be significantly worse for the health of the country. His ideological policies may ultimately harm the people he is trying to help. Emily Thornberry is my incumbent MP and she has been totally unaccountable to her staunchly Remain constituents. She refuses to campaign for a second ‘Are you sure?’ EU referendum, something the local Lib Dem candidate, Alain Desmier, has promised to do. If you must take the UK into radical territory, don’t do it when we’re uncoupling from our like minded neighbours and facing a less stable wider world. Lashing out with a vote for Corbyn is a bit like a hand break turn along a cliff edge.
James Smith is an Islington based photographer. He was educated at a public school and an arts institute.
Sally Jackson on why she’ll vote for the Labour Party
For the many, not the few
Labour has pledged to rebalance an economy that just works for the likes of billionaires like Sir Philip Green right now. We need a fairer tax system and the guarantee of no income tax rises for those earning below £80,000 a year is proof that Labour will not “tax the country until the pips squeak” – an accusation so commonly thrown by the right that Jeremy Corbyn has again and again disproven.
Doing right by the NHS
Jeremy Hunt is a symbol of the callous Tories and their assault on humanity. As a healthcare professional I want him and Theresa’s team gone and I believe only Labour will deliver a fairer deal for patients and healthcare workers. We’re under extreme threat right now and cuts to pharmacy funding are one of the worst false economies I’ve come across. As someone wrote on a wall recently: “I’m no gynaecologist but I know a Hunt when I see one”.
It’s not just about Brexit
I’ve heard enough about “Brexit means Brexit” but I’m glad Jeremy Corbyn voted for Article 50 and opposed a second referendum. The country has spoken and it’s time to get on with it. I supported leave myself and I did so because Europe wasn’t giving us a fair, inclusive society. I believe Labour will give us that and now the focus back on to what’s “Best for Britain” – a phrase that the remoaners Gina Miller and Sir Bob Geldoff should never have been allowed to hijack.
Sally Jackson works as a doctor in Manchester. She was born in Devon and is a graduate of Queen Mary, University of London.
Matthew Steeples asks Conservative candidate for Kensington Lady Borwick five questions; he put the same to the Liberal Democrats Annabel Mullin also whilst Labour’s Emma Dent Coad failed to respond
In the final hours of the 2017 General Election campaign, I asked the Conservative candidate for Kensington, Lady Borwick, five questions I considered relevant to voters in one of Britain’s most wealthy constituencies. I publish below her answers in full and unedited form and beneath also include the responses of the Liberal Democrat candidate, Annabel Mullin, to the same questions.
Emma Dent Coad, Labour’s candidate, was also given the opportunity to answer but failed to respond to several requests.
The five questions to Lady Borwick (initially and then more generally to Annabel Mullin and Emma Dent Coad) were:
Hidden homeless: “What will you do to help the ‘hidden homeless’ of Kensington?”
Money park Kensington: “How will you help local businesses counter such decline if re-elected?”
Brexit: “How, going forward, will you credibly represent the 48% who voted to ‘remain’, as someone who went on the phones to support ‘leave’?”
Answering constituents: “How will you improve your pathetically low 18% response rate to constituents’ correspondence, as registered on TheyWorkForYou.com if re-elected?”
Ivory: “Will you continue to lobby Theresa May about ivory in spite of such being highly unpopular with constituents and others such as Deborah Meaden?”
Pictured above: Annabel Mullin campaigning, Lady Borwick during the Brexit referendum and Emma Dent Coad
Pictured above: Annabel Mullin campaigning, Lady Borwick during the Brexit referendum and Emma Dent Coad
Victoria Borwick, Conservative Party
What will you do to help the ‘hidden homeless’ of Kensington?”
In Parliament, the Homeless Reduction Bill was recently passed –which was almost the last bill to be “signed off” before Parliament broke for the election. This puts pressure on local councillors to provide a range of early intervention solutions.
Current local services – There are a number of local churches who are working in this sector such as St Cuthbert’s (who I visited earlier this week) and our local charities.
From my previous work at the GLA, I know that although there is a hostel place for everyone that is not enough. People need more and longer-term help which is why there are some good charities working locally, for example the Glass Door Project and Homeless Link. I have also worked with several of the veterans’ charities whose aim is not “no second night out” but “no first night out”.
The situation with those that are “street homeless” – these are the people who, for a complex number of reasons, spend time living on the streets. Some do have somewhere to sleep at night, but spend the day on the streets and some live on the streets full time, including overnight.
The first port of call for street homeless people is a hostel and these fall into two categories. “Direct access” and those that require a referral from an agency. These agencies provide not only shelter but some way to address the terrible loneliness, mental health and other problems that most street homeless people feel. We need to look at the provision of hostels, but also work with the organisations that provide longer term support, to help people get over their crisis and get back on their feet – and this can take months, and sometimes longer.
There has to be short-term accommodation but also ways of dealing with the causes of street homelessness. There needs to be “move on” accommodation, for those that have managed to get themselves into a stable state, and where they are becoming independent, but may still need some ongoing support. I have visited services where they have a range of provision in the same location, I.E. those in immediate crisis and those that are more capable.
We need to provide services to help people with drug and alcohol problems which causes so many people to become street homeless, and also with the mental health problems that afflict so many of these people. The council’s Public Health Department has made this a high priority. I particularly welcome the changes to our mental health laws that the Prime Minister has pledged to bring in. These should make a big difference for homeless people with mental health problems.
Money park Kensington: “How will you help local businesses counter such decline if re-elected?”
I have grown up in Kensington and lived here all my life, with my family.
Supporting our small and medium sized local businesses is very important for all of us in Kensington. Local businesses are the backbone of our economy and provide employment and opportunities in our community.
Firstly we have to stop losing small independent businesses, as you have refereed to, so that people do not lose their opportunity to be working locally and also to start business locally. RBKC has continued with our planning exemptions, otherwise across London small businesses were being turfed out of their premises. Many local restaurants have sadly closed.
I have lobbied the Chancellor, and if re-elected will continue to lobby the Chancellor against the rash of additional regulations for small business – the proposed quarterly reporting, the apprenticeship levy – should be for larger firms, the pensions levy and of course the revaluation which has negatively impacted on our shops – and not on the out of town warehouses for mail order.
I recently undertook a survey of many local shops and businesses, either in writing or by visiting in person. On the basis of the response, I wrote to the Treasury, as indeed did the Borough, and also raised it personally with the Chancellor to see if there is any other way of looking at the rates – so that rateable value could be examined to take into account factors such as turnover, size of premises, whether the shop is independent or a chain of premises and so on. If re-elected, I shall continue to raise these concerns with other central London MPs as they affect us all.
I will continue to support local businesses by supporting any legislation in Parliament which will promote businesses and support our local economy.
Buy to Leave – This is a real issue in Central London, and this is something that, as an MP, I discussed with other Central London MPs from all parties. As we are aware this is “investment purchasing” where investors buy, usually a new property, and then do not live in it, and treat it as “money in the bank” which is why they don’t want it to be lived in as they want to keep it new.
When discussing this and researching what is actually happening – RBKC undertook a survey, as have Westminster Council on this topic. There is a pocket of properties where this is very prevalent, however there is not overall interest in this because it affect so very few nationally.
That does not make it any less of a problem – the previous Mayor tried to address this by saying that properties have to be marketed in the UK first, but we are often used to getting a mortgage first and these overseas buyers are cash buyers so naturally they can jump in. The new Mayor is also examining what measures can be taken.
There are examples in Switzerland and Australia where they have tried to tackle this issue. Buy to leave homes have a very negative effect on the community as there are less “eyes on the streets” less community activity and it is difficult for local business to survive.
By continuing to have schools and local amenities it brings together a community and encourages homes for families.
Brexit: “How, going forward, will you credibly represent the 48% who voted to ‘remain’, as someone who went on the phones to support ‘leave’?”
I previously worked for Open Europe which was working with the previous administration on renegotiation, which was my preferred stance. I had hoped that the EU would and could use this time to examine its own processes and undertake reform. I realise the result of the referendum is not the outcome for which everyone might have hoped. My chief concern was accountability, and it became clear there was little that could be done to persuade the Commission towards greater transparency.
As a country we voted to leave the EU. Parliament has voted on two occasions to implement the result, with cross-party support. All sides have agreed to respect the referendum and to get on with the re-negotiations. The Lib Dems may have also offered a second referendum on the result of the negotiations. Theresa May has said she will bring the final agreement to Parliament for a vote.
For Kensington, if re-elected, my role will be to lobby for reciprocal rights for all our long-term residents. Over 50% of the residents in Kensington were not born here and many have made Kensington their home for many years. We should continue to make sure they are welcomed and can continue to play an active part in our community. Many are also great contributors to voluntary and charitable works.
I will represent the views of Kensington in Westminster if I am re-elected; working closely with Ministers to make sure they understand the complexity of Kensington.
The choice for everyone is: “Who should be leading the Brexit negotiations?” Which team do you want? I am supporting Theresa May and her team. I support the PMs ambition to strive for a good outcome for the country.
Answering constituents: “How will you improve your pathetically low 18% response rate to constituents’ correspondence, as registered on TheyWorkForYou.com if re-elected?”
I have always prioritised urgent casework when responding to the vast amount of correspondence my office receives. I receive referrals and pleas for help from individual constituents, charities, churches, the mosque and other religious groups, along with organisations such as the Citizens Advice Bureau and free legal advice clinics. We have helped several thousand families over my time in Parliament. These referrals, usually from someone in crisis, do not come through “They Work for You” thus they are not logged in this way.
People tend to write to us on “They Work for You” if they are asking for our views on a particular campaign. If the campaign has nothing to do with Kensington residents, then I put my views on the website, so that people can see my opinion. However, I try not to comment on things that are not directly relevant to the majority of Kensington residents.
As a team – my priority is casework and dealing directly with residents, and meeting residents each week. I try to avoid “lobbying emails”. Obviously with complex cases we need to see the residents a number of times, and help them with their various meetings with officers or officials and if appropriate I also work with their local councillors (from any party) to make sure they are not left without support.
A Member of Parliament is often the last resort for people on housing, immigration and benefits. I have been able to help a great many residents since elected and I hope to continue to do this if re-elected.
Ivory: “Will you continue to lobby Theresa May about ivory in spite of such being highly unpopular with constituents and others such as Deborah Meaden?”
I supplied a full response to Deborah Meaden who said she was content with my response and why I am representing the antiques trade in Kensington and our great museums. She kindly offered to send my response to others who were concerned. I have offered to meet her should I get re-elected.
I support the current proposals which are to make sure we enforce the ban on trading in modern ivory.
No antique dealer wants to kill elephants; no antique dealer supports poaching. The only ivory that can be sold in this country is antique and carved. However, there are countries, including those in Europe who still permit the trading of tusks, although this is shortly to be outlawed – not before time.
We can and should preserve works of art that are our shared cultural inheritance for future generations, while at the same time doing everything in our power to ensure that these terrible assaults on wildlife do not continue. The next generation need to be able to grow up in a world with healthy herds of elephants. However, these are not mutually exclusive positions. This is a view expressed by some of our leading museums, such as the Victoria and Albert Museum and the British Museum.
As you will be aware many musical instruments contain ivory “tinkling the ivories – playing the piano” comes to mind as well as significant treasures in our churches. In our area we have three magnificent museums – the Natural History, V&A and Science Museums – and they all have ivory – antique and old ivory.
Both elephants and our shared cultural inheritance are there for us all; we need to work together to look after both, and I have no doubt that this is possible.
Annabel Mullin, Liberal Democratic Party
What will you do to help the ‘hidden homeless’ of Kensington?”
Rough sleepers and the homesless have had a very tough time of late. Funding has dried up, centres have closed and specialist help has become less frequent. We need to provide holistic care – that means that we must look at social care with mental health for these individuals alongside.
Money park Kensington: “How will you help local businesses counter such decline if re-elected?”
I would like to bring a private members’ bill to fundamentally change business rates as they are killing our local businesses.
Brexit: “How, going forward, will you credibly represent the 48% who voted to ‘remain’, as someone who went on the phones to support ‘leave’?”
As a passionate European and Remainer who feels we are best placed in the European Union, I will fight especially for being in the single market (not just access) and to protect the rights of all EU citizens and their freedom of movement.
Answering constituents: “How will you improve your pathetically low 18% response rate to constituents’ correspondence, as registered on TheyWorkForYou.com if re-elected?”
It has been an absolute pleasure getting to know people in and around Kensington over the last nearly seven weeks. It would be a privilege to serve Kensington and communicate with everyone.
Ivory: “Will you continue to lobby Theresa May about ivory in spite of such being highly unpopular with constituents and others such as Deborah Meaden?”
I find it incredible that China has a ban but the current MP for Kensington does not support it.
Emma Dent Coad, Labour Party
Emma Dent Coad (pictured with Gina Miller of Best For Britain)
Ms Dent Coad failed to respond to repeated requests from The Steeple Times to answer the five questions. They were put to her via email.
Artist Enzina Fuschini showcases her take on Theresa May at an exhibition in Chelsea; the work is supposedly anything but political
Italian artist and designer Enzina Fuschini held a press preview for her ‘Impact’ exhibition at Chelsea’s 508 Gallery on the Kings Road last night.
Aside from eleven 100cm by 100cm oil on canvas works, ranging in price from £3,000 to 4,000, and one larger canvas at £6,850, this energetic “pictorial force” has included a timely portrayal of Theresa May. The painting contains all the colours of the Tory leader’s “red, white and blue Brexit” but, according to its artist, presents “her in a timeless style with an ageless expression”.
Of the work, a spokesman for Fuschini remarked:
“[Enzina sought to] portray the woman behind the politician. The painting is not political. She had already started the painting three months before the General Election announcement and intends to give the painting to Theresa May as a keepsake”.
Braggart bigot Andre Walker disgraces himself in the wake of the London attacks and is rightly roasted on Twitter
Andre Walker – a “fat, northern… bit of a bruiser” with a penchant for branding The Steeple Times “fake news” – loves attention. He doesn’t care how he gets it, doesn’t care about what offence he causes and aside from wearing a ‘Make America Great Again’ baseball cap to a rally against the 45th POTUS earlier this year, this total pillock decided yesterday to share an image on Twitter of himself waving a cutlass sword on the terrace of the Palace of Westminster in the wake of the latest terror attack in London. It was accompanied by a provocative caption that read: “A bounty on my head. Any #ISIS terrorist that kills me gets £50k. I’ll give my address. No police. But I’ve got a sword. Good luck”.
‘Whackjob Walker’ – a former “political staffer” turned employee of the far-right Breitbart News rant sheet and more recently Jared Kushner’s New York based Observer – naturally wrote about why he opted to share the image in a column provocatively titled: “Today I Offered the Islamic State £50,000 to Kill Me”. Being, and here I won’t mince my words, a complete cock, he then delighted in the controversy he caused and remarked: “I love this” and “I’m up for it”.
Despite being forced to remove the highly insensitive image, which was rightly branded a “bizarre stunt” by the MailOnline, last week’s The Steeple Times ‘Wally of the Week’ Walker – whose previous moments of note have included being caught ranting on trains and involvement in the bullying scandal that resulted in the suicide of his supposed boyfriend, Elliott Johnson – remains unrepentant. On Sunday night, he bleated: “I don’t get why the left hate me for hating terrorists”.
A selection of responses from Twitter users to this Grade A buffoon’s idiocy follow:
As the CPS charge Tory candidate Craig Mackinlay, Theresa May’s poor judgment is yet again illustrated
Yesterday, in spite of Craig Mackinlay, the Conservative candidate for South Thanet, being charged with offences under the Representation of the People Act 1983, Theresa May strangely leapt to his defence.
Mackinlay, a businessman, Tory MP for the constituency from 2015 and leader of the deputy leader of UKIP from 1997 to 2000, defeated then UKIP leader Nigel Farage at the last election by 2,812 votes. Allegations relating to his election spending returns that campaign are cause of his current woes and if convicted, the one-time Conservative Member of Parliament could face up to a year in jail for corruption.
In a statement, issued on his Facebook page on Friday, Mackinlay remarked:
My candidature in South Thanet is entirely unaffected and my campaign continues as before. I will not let this decision affect the hard work I do for my constituents and the hard work I hope to do for them after 8th June.
Our justice system is underpinned by the presumption of innocence and I am confident that I will be acquitted as I have done nothing wrong and acted honestly and properly whilst a candidate in 2015, and as all candidates do, acted upon advice throughout.
Clearly this is a shocking decision by the CPS, given that I’ve done nothing wrong and I am confident that this will be made very clear as the matter progresses.
I am very disappointed with the way this has been handled by the CPS and Kent Police, and I must question the timing of this decision given that Kent Police confirmed on 18th April that their file had been sent to the CPS to review and make their decision: why leave this until a few days before the election?
In response, Nigel Farage – a man, if Mackinlay is indeed convicted, plainly robbed in 2015 – commented:
Once again, it is bad judgment from Theresa May. Why on earth would you allow someone to go ahead as General Election candidate when this cloud was clearly hanging over him?
I’m pleased that somebody’s been charged. My only regret is that there aren’t quite a lot more of them.I personally believe that the law was being broken wholesale in by-elections and in the general election.
What does it mean? Well, effectively what it means in that constituency is that, whilst his name will stay on the ballot paper, I think the chances of people voting for him are now very slim.
Illustrating her dumbfounded loyalty, Theresa May, however, added:
The Conservative Party continues to believe that these allegations are unfounded. Craig Mackinlay is innocent until proven guilty and he remains our candidate.
Shame on Mrs May: She should have, whether innocent or guilty, put a stop to Craig Mackinlay again running for election months ago.
Whackjob former Tory activist turned Jared Kushner employed ‘journalist’ Andre Walker tells ‘The Steeple Times’: “In the words of Trump: ‘You are fake news’” (and then blocks us)
Andre Walker is of the Donald Trump school when it comes to dealing with situations he doesn’t like: This former Tory bullyboy turned Breitbart braggart and Jared Kushner employed Observer “lobby correspondent” thrashes around, shouts loudly and then throws his toys out of the pram.
On Tuesday, after being asked a series of questions about his role in the Conservative Party’s 2015 battlebus scandal via Twitter over a number of weeks, self-confessed “fat, northern… bit of a bruiser” Walker sent The Steeple Times a final tweet and then blocked us. It read:
“I have never run any bus of any description ever. In the words of Trump, ‘you are fake news’”.
Far-right provocateur Walker – whose career highlights have included being forced to resign as a political aide after being exposed smearing colleagues in 2010 and for his connections with the ‘Tatler Tory’ Mark Clarke and events that culminated in the suicide of another activist named Elliott Johnson in 2015 – then charmingly justified his move to his 78,000 followers:
“I’ve only ever blocked one person on Twitter but it’s got to be two now”.
We’re honoured.
Pictured above: Andre Walker (top circle) with his especially pleasant chum, Mark ‘Tatler Tory’ Clarke, below.
Captain SKA re-release 2010 anti-austerity hit ‘Liar Liar’ and this time use it to target “you can’t trust her”, Theresa May
In 2010, a musicial protest group called Captain SKA released Liar Liar as part of their aim to become a “voice against austerity and neoliberal politics”.
The track made some headway, but now, remixed and refocused on Theresa May in particular, includes such lyrics as “strong and stable won’t disguise, we’re still being taken for a ride” and in summary mocks her “porkie pies”.
“We’ve remixed Liar Liar for this general election because we want to do all we can to expose the horrific effects Tory policy has had on ordinary people”.
“Theresa May lies her way through interview after interview without addressing the real issues”.
“We want to do all we can to make sure Theresa May is kicked out of Downing Street on 8th June”.
Elsewhere, in a Facebook post, the group – who’ve already reached the top 40 with their catchy tune – added: “Download [Liar Liar] now and force the BBC to play it on our airwaves”.
As Theresa May’s lead in the poll halves and Jamie Oliver criticizes her policy on universal free school lunches for infants, we call on voters to act with their feet and remind the Tory leader that moderates still deserve to be heard
There’s no point denying Theresa May will win on the 8th June and there’s no doubt she’ll win big. The ‘alternative’ – not that Jeremy Corbyn’s pathetic excuse for a party can even be called that – is beyond bad but, with news that the Conservative Party’s lead has halved to 9 points in a week, comes good news for those that do not subscribe to a desire for a one party state.
With the prospect that Mrs May – whose attempt to make her ‘Strong and Stable’ campaign about ‘Theresa’s Team’ rather than using the name of her own party is starting to backfire – will not have as big a majority as she expected, there is a chance there will be at least some form of opposition to the vicar’s daughter’s hectoring ways.
In constituencies like Kensington, for example, ‘Remain’ supporters should vote against a shown-to-be lazy MP, Lady Borwick, and back Annabel Mullin of the Liberal Democrats – a lady who issued several video messages yesterday pledging to ‘#HoldToriesToAccount’. A protest vote in this Tory stronghold would send the most powerful signal of all to Mrs May that her “red, white and blue hard Brexit” needs to be tempered and it would act as a reminder that the 48% must still be heard.
Elsewhere, food campaigner and restaurateur Jamie Oliver spoke for the majority when he put his head in his hands and told Channel 4: “Oh, it’s awful. It’s awful. She will regret that” of the Conservatives’ plan to scrap universal free school lunches for infants in their first three years at primary school. He continued:
“Well, first of all, I’m apolitical. So don’t go thinking I’m ranting about one thing or the other… As far as I see it, and I believe I’m someone that’s had my hands dirty for twelve years now and I know what I’m talking about, right? It’s completely short-sighted. It’s completely short-sighted”.
“And I want her [Theresa May] to be a brilliant Prime Minister. I want a brilliant female Prime Minister. Fundamentally, what she’s doing is taking from teachers and taking from the kids”.
“If you speak to Mark Carney and the people at the highest level of economics, if you speak to Oxford Cambridge University on the modelling, the economic modelling of public health and the cost of ill health and the investment. Like, it’s the best bang for your buck you’re going to get. Don’t take from the kids. Don’t take from the teachers”.
New contributor Mark Newton shares his views on the “dubious record” of Lady Borwick, Conservative parliamentary candidate for Kensington
Kensington, Kensington, its name beats the drum of the Conservative heartland of London. Tory grandees have worked long and hard to be fortified in this Bastion with greats like Alan Clark, Michael Portillo and Malcom Rifkind amongst its previous tenants. To be given Kensington is to be awarded one of the safest, and most convenient seats in the land – a prize to be won by only the hardest working, and most industrious of MPs and this, to my mind, makes the continued selection of Lady Borwick (née Victoria Poore) as the Tory candidate even harder to understand.
Known locally by the epithet ‘Lazy Borwick’, this latest MP is cast quite differently from the usual Kensington mould. Lady (‘Call me Victoria’) Borwick’s stance on Brexit, lousy debate participation and letter response history, questionable use of public funds and ongoing links to shady businesses is creating quite the heated storm in the chattering leafy private gardens of Kensington. Over the next three articles, I’ll be taking a look at Lady Borwick to try to get to the bottom of how and why one of the safest Tory seats of the land came to be held by the one of the least worthy occupants.
Lady Borwick succeeded in getting her hands on Kensington after Malcolm Rifkind stepped down at the 2015 General Election. The circumstances of that coup are somewhat strange, not least because of the history of Kensington in selecting high profile and hard working MPs. What seems to have happened is simple nepotism. Lady Borwick, having twice failed to make the selection list for London mayor during Steven Norris’ candidacy, finally slid into the London Assembly in 2008 as one of three London-wide Conservative members. From there it was an easy promotion from Boris Johnson to the Deputy Mayorhood, and it seems no-one less than the great ‘BoJo’ himself shoe-horned her into the Kensington seat ahead of better qualified and more industrious candidates.
So why then is the epithet ‘Lazy Borwick’ doing the rounds in the Royal Borough? Surprisingly, it has very little to do with her controversial Brexit stance in a strongly Remain constituency. What’s got Conservatives up in arms is her uselessness as a constituency MP. According to the MP tracking website TheyWorkForYou, Lady Borwick’s response rate to written enquiries is just 18% – an abysmal score that places her 618th on a list of 641 responding MPs. If there’s one thing the well-to-do residents of Kensington don’t like it’s an MP who is too busy or lazy to respond to their well-meant enquiries, particularly a Member of Parliament who manages to be significantly less efficient than her much busier, high profile forbearers.
So, what, might you ask, is taking up so much of Lazy Borwick’s time that she can’t manage to get to her mail bag? Some suggest that it may be her tireless work for charity, yet, strangely, Lady Borwick’s parliamentary voting record seems to spit in the face of the charitable causes she purports to support. Recently, she has jumped on the laudable activities of @CleanAirLondon, a much needed initiative to clean up London’s diesel rich environment, yet in the Commons ‘Lazy Borwick’ has consistently voted against climate change measures, and against a greater public control of bus services. Hard to reconcile with the self-promotional pictures of her backing smart energy meters.
Lady Borwick also claims to support local hospitals and to regularly visit the elderly residents of Kensington. She even spoke at a recent debate in favour of mental health and mobility support. Yet in the House of Commons she has almost always voted against paying benefits to those unable to work due to illness or disability and has consistently voted against the terminally ill being given assistance to end their lives.
Finally, there are those who suggest ‘Lazy Borwick’ may simply be too busy with parliamentary duties to answer constituents’ letters, yet she spoke in just 15 debates in the last year, well below average amongst MPs, and dramatically lower than previous high profile Kensington MPs.
Whatever it is that keeps Lady Borwick entertained, it can’t then be serving the interests of her constituents, so to get answers we need to dig further, into her bizarre and odd beliefs about Europe, and her odd use of public funds and ties to ‘Big Data’ business.
Coming up next – ‘Brexit Borwick’ and residents’ anger in Kensington; the constituency with the greatest proportion of EU nationals of any London borough.
Pictured above – ‘Woman of the people’ Lady Borwick – a “director and member of Poore and Second Poore Ltd; holding companies limited by guarantee” – aboard a 40-metre yacht in 2014 with Sunseeker Cheshire’s Jonathan Kingsley. At the time Mr Kingsley commented: “It was a wonderful opportunity to promote our iconic brand and reinforce the British success of Sunseeker to this high profile, influential Lady. She, and her son, adored the boat”.
A previous ‘Moron of the Moment’ on these pages, Lady “I actually have quite a lot more experience than people think I do” Nugee asked the Secretary of State for Defence to reveal where he was on 27th May 2007. When Sir Michael said he did not know and “scrambled to defend himself”, Lady Nugee told him he was “talking bollocks” and curtly added: “You were in Syria and you were celebrating at a reception for the re-election of President Assad with 99% of the vote. Now, I’m not going to judge you for going to a reception with Assad”.
Though Sir Michael responded: “I don’t recall any party in Syria. I remember a fact-finding visit to Syria”, Lady Nugee continued like a mad attack dog and did not give up. She continued: “You really can’t just go around making this stuff up. There’s an election and people need to make decisions on the basis of the truth”.
Rather inconveniently for the Shadow Foreign Secretary, later in the day, a pictured emerged of her hapless leader, Jeremy Corbyn, at a reception with President Bashar al-Assad in 2009.
#DoubleBollocks
Lady Nugee with Sir Michael Fallon and Andrew Marr on Sunday
