Life on the Campaign Trail #1: Ibrahim Taguri, Brent Central

Liberal Democrat posters - Some rights reserved by Brett PattersonLiberal Democrat Voice has asked key Liberal Democrat parliamentary candidates to give us an insight into what they’re doing in their areas and what they want to do for their communities. Ibrahim Taguri, PPC for Brent Central kicks the series off by saying that he would dedicate his first term to eradicating child poverty by 2020. Read on to find out why this is so important to him. 

Being a parliamentary candidate is a huge privilege. Especially for my home town of Brent. Having grown up in the area I don’t think of anyone as a constituent. They are neighbours, friends, relatives and people I’ve known for years. So with every cause and issue I take up on their behalf I have to be able to look them in the eye and say I did my best and I tried my hardest.

I was made in Brent, I’ll be fighting for Brent and I will be putting the people of Brent first. Growing up I experienced many of the issues that are still prevalent in Brent today; poverty, the threat of homelessness and the pressures these bring to family life.

Yet I was lucky. My mother was single minded when it came to our education as children. That was our route out of poverty. I was also lucky in many ways, so when I had opportunities I was able to make the most of them. That’s why when Sarah Teather announced she was standing down as MP, I knew I had to take the opportunity to represent my community. My job as an MP will be to challenge those structural barriers that prevent people getting on in life as well as to support the most vulnerable in our society on a day to day basis, helping them to escape a cycle of despair.

That’s why, if I’m fortunate enough to be elected, I will be dedicating my first term in parliament to eradicating child poverty in the UK by 2020. A goal set out but the last administration and continued by the coalition. Yet the target is in serious danger of being missed as political parties continue to embroil themselves in blame games and semantics.

I believe that focusing on this issue we can tackle many of the great challenges of our time; improving life chances no matter where someone was born, integrating physical and mental health services; increasing housing stock to not uproot families; providing more educational opportunities and making work pay. The list goes on.

If we commit ourselves as a nation, as a government and as people to this priority, society can make huge strides in creating a better way of life for our communities and our future generations.

For all of the issues we face in Brent, it is a glorious, diverse and vibrant corner of London that captures the spirit of community. There are personal stories that both break your heart and inspire you to better things. From Pratima, who took up fostering after her husband died; Nazeema, a volunteer who teaches isolated women English as second language; Sev who works with vulnerable women in building self-confidence through self-defence; to the groups that run our volunteer libraries or clean up our streets because the council won’t.

These are all stories of hope for Brent, and if I get the chance I will fight for those people and put Brent first.

* Ibrahim Taguri is the Liberal Democrat PPC for Brent Central

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2 Comments

  • Jayne Mansfield 18th Aug '14 - 6:53pm

    Good luck Ibrahim,
    What shines through in your post is an authenticity, a genuine passion and commitment to those you hope to represent.

    The only note that jarred with me was the ‘making work pay’. It is associated in my mind with toryism and the idea that people are workless because they are scroungers. The most effective way of making work pay, is by increasing the wages of the lowest paid, but maybe that was what you meant.

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