Who gets your vote in Hampstead and Kilburn? Meet Kirsty Allan
We look at the Liberal Democrats' candidate in the North London constituency
Marc Shoffman is a freelance journalist
The home of Jewish landmarks such as JW3 and St John’s Wood Synagogue, voters in Hampstead and Kilburn have an all-female choice when it comes to the main parties’ candidates. Labour’s Tulip Siddiq had a slender 1,138 majority in 2015.
Here, we meet Kirsty Allan of the Liberal Democrats:
Kirsty Allan has worked in the offices of veteran Liberal Democrat politicians, including Lynne Featherstone and Norman Lamb, but is ready to step into the limelight.
“It’s no good standing on the sidelines feeling aggrieved at your country heading in a direction that you don’t like. Democracy is about participation; if you want change, then you have to work for it, so I am,” she says.
Allan says a vote for her would be backing for a “committed local MP that works hard on behalf of everyone, who listens to their concerns and represents their concerns in Westminster, who is available to them and does whatever I can to help. That means being active in the community, working closely with local groups, and responding to residents’ needs. ”
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She says the government, MPs and media must do more to tackle rising anti-Semitism and hate crime, which she says has, “to a degree”, been fostered by the Brexit vote.
Allan expresses support for properly-funded faith schooling, adding: “I understand the very important and formative role faith schools play in not only providing an excellent education, but also in teaching kids about their own faith, culture and identity, even though my personal preference is for children to be educated in a multi-faith environment as I believe it helps to encourage greater tolerance and understanding of different faiths and practices at a young age. To my mind, that can only help in creating a more tolerant, accepting and inclusive community.”
Also seeking election in this constituency: Tulip Siddiq, Labour, Claire-Louise Leyland Conservative, Green Party, John Mansook, Independent, Hugh Easterbrook, Independent, Rainbow, George Weiss.
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