West Hampstead

Dispatch From Hampstead And Kilburn – Interview With Magnus Nielsen (UKIP)

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UKIP candidate Magnus Nielsen is perhaps best known for his eyebrow-raising comments on Islam, proposing that mosques should only be able to hire imams from a government-approved register of non-extremist preachers. When interviewed prior to the candidate hustings on Thursday, Nielsen stated that he is in favour of peoples’ right to practice religion freely, so long as it does not “intervene on the human rights of other people”.

Nielsen also defended UKIP from what the party sees as media obsession with the misdeeds and wacky opinions of some of their “loose cannon” candidates, pointing out that “UKIP is the only party which will not allow you to become a member if you have been a member of the BNP. That is not true of the Labour Party”.

Interestingly, Magnus Nielsen did not have a ready position to take on TTIP, declining to say whether he was for or against the trade deal currently being negotiated between the European Union and the United States until he researched the issue further.

 

Click here for interviews with each of the 2015 candidates standing for election in Hampstead and Kilburn, and a summary of the recent hustings organised by West Hampstead Life.

Magnus Nielsen - UKIP - Hampstead and Kilburn - General Election 2015

Dispatch From Hampstead And Kilburn – Interview With Rebecca Johnson (Green Party)

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When interviewing Rebecca Johnson, I asked how the Green Party would mitigate what would inevitably be huge transitional costs involved in moving the British economy from its current state to a radically different, more “sustainable” footing, particularly if the rest of the world did not follow suit. Johnson spoke about “growing different kinds of jobs, community based jobs, community based shops, localised, community based industry to supply the sustainable, renewable energy” and vowed to “change the architecture of how energy is produced”.

When asked about this upheaval, Johnson said: “there will be transitional changes. I see those as opportunities. With every opportunity there will be different ways in which jobs and industry and community responsibilities will change and will grow … I believe that very very quickly, people will find that they are happier, healthier, they have better communities and better living standards, they have better education and health which means better security”.

Rebecca Johnson continued: “I believe that the transition can be done in the lifetime of one parliament”.

 

Click here for interviews with each of the 2015 candidates standing for election in Hampstead and Kilburn, and a summary of the recent hustings organised by West Hampstead Life.

Rebecca Johnson - Green Party - Hampstead and Kilburn - General Election 2015

General Election Hustings 2015 – Hampstead and Kilburn

Samuel Hooper1 Comment

West Hampstead General Election 2015 Candidate Hustings

 

When the votes of the 2010 general election were counted in the northwest London constituency of Hampstead and Kilburn, veteran Labour MP Glenda Jackson clung on to her seat in the face of a strong Conservative challenge by the narrowest of margins – a mere 44 votes. The fact that the Liberal Democrats were a only 800 votes further behind makes this blogger’s home constituency the tightest three-way marginal in the country.

Based on the 2010 results, with Labour 44 votes ahead of the Tories and the Conservative-LibDem coalition none too popular among many voters, the Labour Party could reasonably expect to hold this seat in May 2015. But these are not normal times, and the various national dynamics at play will keep this constituency an interesting one to watch.

The excellent local West Hampstead blog, West Hampstead Life, is organising candidate hustings to take place in the constituency at the Sheriff Centre on West End Lane tonight at 7.30pm. Your blogger will be present, and hopes to sneak a couple of minutes with each candidate to question them on national issues and their personal philosophies.

The parliamentary candidates for the constituency of Hampstead & Kilburn are as follows:

Labour – Tulip Siddiq

Conservative – Simon Marcus

Liberal Democrat – Maajid Nawaz

UKIP – Magnus Nielsen

Green Party – Rebecca Johnson

 

This blog will live-tweet the hustings @SamHooper, and publish a summary shortly after the event.