Just in case some people in Hackney haven't read the Telegraph's City Diary column today. Apparently the Lib Dem candidate for Hackney South has an odd car. The Telegraph website refers to a photo of this car which I couldn't see.
The Telegraph writer said: "I can't imagine the car will endear him to the good people of Hackney, but what do I know? If there are enough estates agents living in the borough it might just work."
With a picture being 'worth a thousand words' and the Telegraph story coming in at 80, it's hard to know how seriously to take Dave Raval's car problem.
On his website Dave says: "The Lib Dems are in second place. But most people in Hackney don't vote. If more did Labour could easily be beaten."
However, according to the Guardian (found via theyworkforyou.com) Meg Hillier's seat has been Labour since 1974 (and was Labour from 1950 as Shoreditch and Finsbury in 1966 Sir Oswald Mosely was one of the candidates).
In the past, the more people who have voted in the constituency, the larger the Labour majority. In the last General Election (2005) Labour voters were upset by the Iraq war but Labour still won reasonably comfortably.
However, both previous Labour MPs of Hackney South and Shoreditch, Brian Sedgemore and Ronald Brown, defected to the Lib Dems while still holding the seat.
Other interesting info on Dave's site includes: "The Liberal Democrats recently surveyed 8,000 people in Hackney and 62% of the respondents said that our council wasn’t doing enough for the environment." What else did 8000 people in Hackney say?
Last year Dave moved to Amhurst Road from Walthamstow in an effort to get to know the borough. He points out that neither Meg Hillier or Diane Abbott live in the borough (Which is wrong - as per comment below, Diane has lived in Hackney for 22 year. I didn't know that either)
Link to recent Dave Raval Hackney event - http://www.eastlondonlines.co.uk/2010/01/hackney-residents-meet-to-help-save-the-planet/
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Actually I have lived in Hackney for 22 years
ReplyDeleteSorry about that! Thanks for letting me know. I'm hoping you'd be up for an interview sometime - I've been in touch with your office. I promise to be more diligent in my fact checking.
ReplyDeleteHello there, I just stumbled across this blog. There is a lot of really good local info on here, I’ll keep on coming back, thanks!
ReplyDeleteI’ll respond to your points separately. Firstly, I said that neither Labour MP for Hackney live in the area they represent. This is true - it’s is a simple fact. This is what I wrote on my website, www.daveraval.com, in reply to Diane Abbott’s comment there. Clearly I have hit on something that the Labour MPs feel touchy about!
"Diane - Thanks for looking at my website! Much appreciated.
You do indeed live in Hackney, you live in Hackney South and your MP is Meg Hillier. (Meg doesn't live in Hackney).
In fact, I was planning to canvass you since (whilst I am sure publicly you have to categorically say that you intend to vote Labour, and I don't expect you to respond in any other way on this site), I suspect that actually there is a high chance that you don't support the current Labour leadership and it is a secret ballot after all...
The point I am making is that, unlike many MPs, including Meg Hillier, I am dedicated to the area I am standing in and have proven it by moving here. Do I think that's the most important thing in politics - no I don't, but it does show commitment and I think people should be able to make up their own minds about this, armed with the facts".
The other question you asked was – what car I drive!! That one is simple to answer – it is an ultra low carbon Mini, with a British flag on the roof. It’s low carbon because I care about the environment (I don’t drive it much in the first place) and I put the flag there as I’m fed up with the racist parties in this country claiming it for themselves. As a mixed-race Brit, the British flag is mine too!
ReplyDeleteIf you’re still curious, there’s a photo on www.daveraval.com, click on “Green Living” in the “About Dave” section (just above my photo). Still amazed that the car made it into the Daily Telegraph though...