01 July 2007

Nancy Platts - Labour PPC for Brighton Pavilion


In a comprehensive victory, Nancy Platts was elected as Labour's Prospective Parliamentary Candidate for Brighton Pavilion for the next general election. At a packed hustings meeting yesterday afternoon, Nancy won well over half of the first preference votes...

Nancy was my preferred candidate and I am really pleased she won, and also that she won so comprehensively. It was important that members elected a candidate we can all unite behind. With the Green's current tussle between Caroline Lucas and Keith Taylor causing resentment in their ranks - Labour in Pavilion has the advantage of having a candidate with universal support who can reach out to disaffected Green voters. A number of Labour members have said they will become more active in the party as a result of Nancy's selection and some ex-members have rejoined the party (the last few months of internal elections and the recent 'Brown boost' have seen Labour membership starting to grow again).

What impressed me about Nancy was her depth of knowledge about a whole range of subjects and this came though in her speeches and in the question and answer sessions afterwards. She also gave straight honest answers to the questions without having to resort to political obfuscation.

You civil liberties / NO2ID people out there, will probably be pleased to hear that Nancy is a member of Liberty and not a fan of ID cards. She is also not a fan of PFI, having fought a campaign against the PPP of the London Underground and she was also against the Iraq War.

Nancy is a big admirer of Ken Livingstone's green policies. What people forget about Ken is that (despite only having limited powers) he is probably one of the most Green politicians around, not just the courage he showed in introducing the congestion charge, but also his support for the bus network (London alongside Brighton is one of the few places in the UK where bus travel is increasing) and his ambitious targets for reducing carbon emissions. Ken's free bus travel for under 18s and freedom pass for pensioners and disabled, opposition to energy wasting de-salination plants and his innovative ideas on waste collection and house building projects demonstrate his practical achievements (he has also been so successful electorally that the Lib Dems/Tories have resorted to underhand tactics in the unelected Lords - disgracefully trying to ban him from standing because they cannot beat him at the ballot box).

Nancy has been a highly effective campaigner on a number of issues and she demonstrates a real commitment to tackling inequality, not shying away from talking about the need to restructure taxation and benefits.

Nancy's openness and the landslide endorsement she received from the membership have restored my faith in the Labour party and I look forward to campaigning alongside her and David Lepper MP in keeping Brighton Pavilion Labour. Nancy will be an excellent representative for Brighton Pavilion and I am confident that she can win.

2 comments:

  1. So she was the one who scored maximum points on your "who shall I support" questionnaire was she?

    ReplyDelete
  2. The candidate that got the highest score dropped out of the race.

    ReplyDelete

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