Interview With Labour Parliamentary Candidate

EX Rugby player and keen Chess Player, Kaleem Saeed, Labour?s Election candidate for the Henley Constituency (which includes Thame), has swept into South Oxfordshire from Glasgow, undaunted by his Conservative opponent?s 8,000+ majority, really believing that he can win.
Realistic or not, nobody can say that Kaleem isn?t working hard to cover the whole constituency and doing his very best to get to know the area and talk to the voters.
I interviewed him over a cup of coffee in the Social, during a breather for coffee, or in his case, lemonade, from talking to local people visiting Thame?s Tuesday market.
I asked him about the issues local people were raising with him:
? ?War is an issue for some people but I believe that it was the right thing to do to get rid of Saddam; Most people tell me that whilst the way we went to war in Iraz does concern them, they don?t vote on one issue. I prefer to focus on the other achievements of the Labour government i.e. the introduction of the minimum wage, tax credits etc.?
? ?Student fees is another popular topic, but I ask them ? Where is the money going to come from otherwise? Their taxes? Money from the Health Service? From the education budget?
? The economy is the biggest issue for the waiverers; we have provided stability which is good for families, good for business, good for stability?
? ?What of Tony Blair himself?? I asked? Kaleem replied: ? He is the man who is behind all of this! He has radically changed so many things over the last 8 years and done what he said he would do before the last election.?
? I asked Kaleem to sum up the basic difference between himself and Boris Johnson;
?I am going to listen to people; He is good at being in the right place with the media but he doesn?t deliver on local issues i.e. the closure of Youth centre in Sonning Common ? where was Boris? Look at his statements on the Henley-Twyford line, where he got his facts wrong. He?s been too busy with his other affairs to listen to what is happening and so is misinformed. He admitted recently that he didn?t know his party?s policy on drugs!
? QUESTION: What about that majority last time? What makes you think you can defeat those numbers?
?Boris may have won in 1992, but the issues of today are different from the issues then. ?I will be a very good candidate and work on local issues. I am younger, have fresh ideas and am willing to listen.?
? QUESTION: The Lib Dems are fighting a hard campaign too and were the second-place party in 1992; doesn?t David Turner have the advantage as a known county councillor?
?I have shown more commitment than David Turner; I have not gone back to work after meetings! I have made the sacrifice, given up my job for the duration and have been campaigning since January, and I have an excellent team behind me.?
? QUESTION: What do you say to people who suggest that labour supporters to should vote tactically for the Lib Dems to get the Tories out?
?The Lib Dems are misleading people over the figures from last time; Labour were only 2,500 behind the Lib Dems ? that?s practically neck and neck. Tactical voting would only work if the difference between us were larger.
? QUESTION: If you did win the seat, would you come down and live in the Constituency? Yes

Kaleem concluded: ?If Boris wants to be MP again, he should give up his other commitments and serve people properly; he gives more commitment to The Spectator than on being an MP ? that?s not fair on his constituents.
Hezeltine had a majority of around 11,000, Boris had 8,000. There?s an obvious downward trend there. What I am saying to Conservative voters is, if this trend continues over the next two elections, their candidate is pulling their party down so they might as well vote for the right candidate now!
?Constituents should come first.?
Whatever your politics, there’s no denying that Kaleem Saeed is an astute and determined young politician who, whether he wins Henley or not, will make his mark in his party in the not so distant future.