London Mayor shortlist published

The Liberal Democrats have just announced their shortlist for London Mayor. The final choice will be made by party members in London in a postal ballot.

The people are:

  • Chamali Fernando
  • Fiyaz Mughal
  • Brian Paddick
  • More details, including hustings, over at the party’s website.

    Read more by or more about .
    This entry was posted in Selection news.
    Advert

    26 Comments

    • All men? :-/

    • Benjamin Mathis 10th Sep '07 - 12:43pm

      No. Chamali was definitely a girl last time I saw her!

    • Ah, that’s better. 🙂

    • A genuinely interseting and different shortlist – giving Party members a real choice.

      Well done!

    • Yes, I’m looking forward to the campaign. Should be interesting.

    • Geoffrey Payne 10th Sep '07 - 1:44pm

      Brian is the obvious favourite, but I hope the other candidates benefit from an increased profile in the party.
      I was very impressed with Fiyaz when he spoke at a Pizza and Politics event recently (the subject was on the Arab-Isreali conflict) and I was impressed with both his passion and moderation on the subject.
      London is a different matter of course, so I look forward to finding out more. I for one have not decided yet…

    • Not sure we can celebrate just yet, Vivian. Two male heavy-hitters and one female nobody does not equality make.

    • Oh, come on, you don’t expect any of those candidates to beat Boris AND Ken, let alone one of them?

      You really think Boris has a good chance of beating Ken?

    • Comment 7 – I wouldn’t be so confident about Boris. Everyone I speak to thinks he’s funny and will brighten up the campaign, but no-one intends to vote for him. Few people will trust him to run London. Brian Paddick on the other hand has been a police officer in the capital for 30 years, and in latter years at a very senior level. That’s experience that Boris simply doesn’t have – however much he may amuse us.

      Comment 8 – calling one of the candidates a “female nobody” does not equality make either. Why don’t you try showing the candidates a little bit more respect?

    • Stuart, I recapitulate at more length: on a practical level, Brian Paddick has the history you describe and Fiyaz Mughal has a long history with the party and as an independent BME campaigner/community leader. Chamali is such an obviously outside bet in terms of experience and profile that the whole thing smacks suspiciously of balancing up the candidate sheet. Which tends to get one down, if nothing else because of the age-old problem of the need for such balancing up.

      In short, I think pith, rather than disrespect, is my problem here.

    • Cheltenham Robin 10th Sep '07 - 9:25pm

      Having Boris in charge of London would be like putting Grant Shapps in charge of your internet security.

    • Re: comment 11 – it’s all “me me me” with some Tories isn’t it!
      😉

    • LEtters @11, I think we have actually—everyone likes Boris, no one will vote for him.

      Beating Ken? That’ll take more than Boris is capable of (and both he and Cameron know it, d’you really think he wants to and plans to win?). He’s the candidate to put up a fight, nothing more.

      But Paddick has substance, respect and is known, plus he’s not a politician. I think he could beat Ken. He can definitely beat Boris. Then there are the transfers to consider, and Paddick can pick up more than Boris can.

      Don’t know the other two, will pay attention to the campaign with interest before making a final decision but, well, Paddick looks like a damn fine choice from here.

    • Tory hq dissident 11th Sep '07 - 1:46am

      Interesting feedback, Brian maybe the favourite but the question is ” what is the strategy for this campaign ?”

      Once that has been established then the candidate or most suitable one will be instantly recognisable. Boris is the class fool, cameron’s experiment and the lipid test for his own party on key campaigning techniques.

      Paddick is credible but has no political experience and has never campaigned. We will be trading on the cannabis and personal orientation issue.

      Fiyaz is articulate and controversial whereas, Chamali is unknown but will have a story to tell. The major bonus for us as a party is that the candidates will enjoy previously untapped media exposure and if the bookies get it wrong then an upset could well catapult the party’s poll ratings, upwards !!

    • Doubt is Ken or Boris are too worried about any of them to be honest.

    • Is the Fiyaz Mughal the same person who was the PPC in Bethnal Green and Bow (but stood down before the 2001 election)?

    • Tory hq dissident 12th Sep '07 - 12:14am

      Ken and Boris will not worry about someone who is not yet selected.

      A candidate can only win if they have absolute self belief, a great campaign and party support

      Lib Dems require ambition, desire and direction. Previous Mayoral Campaigns have not had any of these. Liberal Democrats will need to find an answer to this as without it then paddick, fernando and mughal are just entries on the web.

      The candidates need to be assessed on how they can differentiate themselves against Boris and Ken.

      But whatever the differentiator it should not be their achilles heel. Paddick has a question of orientation and the perception of it, Mughal a party member who last conference wanted to leave the party, fernando a political entrant as opposed to senior heavyweight.

      Therefore, critically if Ken and Boris are heavyweight then another entrant of their class may not help to win the air war or popular public appeal.

      Your comments ladies and gentleman

    • 19 – my comment…

      ‘Ken and Boris will not worry about someone who is not yet selected.’

      On that basis the Boris campaign can be discounted.

      And as for mentioning ‘Boris’ and ‘heavyweight’ in the same sentence – you’re having a laugh surely?

    • Fiyaz Mughal 12th Sep '07 - 5:59pm

      Hi and thank ‘Tory HQ dissident’ for your comments; just a quick point to pick up on and that is in 2004 I had stated that if the Party did not manage to field even a few Black and Minority Ethnic Parliamentary candidates within the next 6 months, that I would consider leaving the Party.

      Leicester East kicked off and we had Parmjit Singh Gill as the candidate within Leicester East and moves were made by the Party President to implement new mentoring and support functions. Things have been slow, but I was confident then and am more confident now that structurally, the tide has turned and we are now getting a flow of BME candidates through the Party. Not only are they coming through at councillor and activist level, they are also coming through at the Mayoral selection level!

      The main thing is to maintain the turn around and I am supportive of the regime of change that Simon Hughes brought in and which Sir Menzies has also brought weight to. I must also acknowledge the fact that MP’s like Ed Davey, Norman Lamb and Evan Harris have been key individuals who have supported this agenda of change.

    • Tory hq dissident 12th Sep '07 - 7:27pm

      Whether it is accepted or not the media perceive Boris to be a ” heavyweight contender” he is without question entertaining and may well achieve popularity by being just that.

      In response to Fiyaz’s comment, the party decided to launch a diveristy fund and if I not mistaken the strength of ethnic minority candidates ought to be in their ability to compete through their own endeavours.

    • Benjamin Mathis 13th Sep '07 - 6:00pm

      Indeed it should but if there appears or is thought to be an electoral disadvantage in selecting a non-white candidate then something needs to be done to level things out and if that means local parties that select BME candidates have to be given modest extra funding to bolster their campaigns to compensate then it’s something we have to entertain.

    • Grammar Police 13th Sep '07 - 6:07pm

      Was it not Leicester South, Fiyaz?

    • Mughal was by far the best on the Politics Show – 16th Sept, 12pm BBC1. Paddick was un-prepared and Fernando looked out of her depth. On that evidence alone, Mughal is head & shoulders above the other 2. Will Paddick still win as he is white & gay remains to be seen?

    • Whenever fiyaz comes under pressure he goes negative and sadly that sums up his bid for the post.

    Post a Comment

    Lib Dem Voice welcomes comments from everyone but we ask you to be polite, to be on topic and to be who you say you are. You can read our comments policy in full here. Please respect it and all readers of the site.

    To have your photo next to your comment please signup your email address with Gravatar.

    Your email is never published. Required fields are marked *

    *
    *
    Please complete the name of this site, Liberal Democrat ...?

    Advert

    Recent Comments

    • Andy Daer
      @Mark Frankel, yes, it would be nice and neat if it were true that "the Arabs" reject the two state solution. In fact, it is the leadership of the Israeli state...
    • Mark Frankel
      If you break into your neighbour's territory, murder 1200 of its people, kidnap hundreds more and use them to further weaken your neighbour's peace and security...
    • Luisa Porritt
      Roderick, this is what campaigning is all about. Nothing can ever take away the trauma your school friends live with as a result of the horrific abuse they suff...
    • Mark Frankel
      Israel did not emerge from the ruins of the Ottoman Empire. It emerged from the ruins of the British Mandate in Palestine. The British tried to implement the ...
    • Andy Daer
      Tom is normally a reliable commentator, but his pessimism here is unjustified. Trump habitually rocks the boat with crazy ideas, and drops them if they turn out...