On 2nd December, 181 people from 19 diverse community organisations gathered at Church of Christ the Cornerstone to hear MK’s parliamentary candidates introduce themselves and respond to the campaign interests of Citizens:mk alliance.
The event aimed to promote respectful dialogue for more informed voting at the General Election on 12th December. All candidates were invited and co-chairs Kurshida Mirza of Truby’s Garden Tea Room and Neil Hutchinson of MK Academy (pictured above) expressed disappointment that the Conservative Party candidates for MK North and South, held by Conservative MPs since 2010, were unable to attend this Citizens:mk assembly because they were busy elsewhere.
A rap video was played, Planet Water by pupils from Orchard Academy primary school (see lyrics), and some attendees put on Greta Thunberg masks (pictured above) to show solidarity with the children and young people in MK and around the world who are campaigning for action on climate change.
After short welcome speeches from Rev George Mwaura and MK Mayor Sam Crooks (pictured below), the presentations from Citizens:mk’s campaign leaders (pictured below) got underway:
- Action on Climate Change, Kirsty Forshaw – see video
- Fair Work, Hala Afify – see video
- Refugees Welcome, Tim Norwood – see video
- Policing & Fight Hate, Fidele Mutwarisibo, Arif Masters and Jane Whild – see video.
After everyone was asked to have a short one-to-one conversation with someone they didn’t know (pictured below) the six attending parliamentary candidates made their five-minute presentations, each strictly timed by Boyzie Morse of MK Quaker Meeting.
The candidates were asked to respond to the following questions:
- why are you standing for election? (one minute)
- response to one question selected by Citizens:mk Leadership Group from questions emailed in advance by registered attendees: If elected, how would you make sure your priority is to Milton Keynes before your party, and how would you ensure the views of local residents aren’t ignored? (one minute)
- response to Citizens:mk Asks below (two minutes).
The asks – If elected, will you…
- Attend and contribute to our Annual Assembly
- Convene meetings we arrange with local business and other leaders, in support of a local Campaign (one per year)
- Call for and support in Parliament measures conducive to our local campaigns
- Meet with our Leadership Team twice a year for one hour, either in MK or Westminster.
These were the candidates and their responses:
- Alan Francis, The Green Party (MK South) – see video
- Stephen Fulton, Independent (MK South) – see video
- Hannah O’Neill, Labour Party (MK South) – see video
- Aisha Mir, Liberal Democrats (MK North) – see video
- Charlynne Pullen, Labour Party (MK North) – see video
- Catherine Rose, The Green Party (MK North) – see video
In the absence of the Conservative candidates, the Leader of the Conservative group on MK Council was given the opportunity to read statements from them (pictured below). He pledged to organise a meeting between any Conservative MP(s) elected and members of Citizens:mk Leadership Group within three months of the election.
Saleyha Ahsan, Liberal Democrat candidate for MK South, sent her apologies for absence due to ill health.
In a group Evaluation immediately after, the event was scored 8 out of 10, with points being dropped for lower than target turnout and insufficient audibility of all speakers. As Headteacher Neil Hutchinson later pointed out, “this would be a very high grade in GCSE or A level!”
Photos by Liam Hyatt. Filming by Chris Valentine.