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General Election 2019: Meet the Feltham and Heston candidates

By Kate Pounds
November 20 11 2019, 21.00

Seema Malhotra achieved a 61.4% majority in 2017, up 8.9% on her 2015 majority, with nearly double the number of votes of her Conservative nearest rival.

The seat has been held by Labour since 1992, with Ms Malhotra being the MP since a 2011 by-election.

Ms Malhotra has increased her majority by more than 8% with each subsequent election.

Voter turn out was 64.9%, low for London’s average of 70.2% and England’s 69.3%.

Tony Firkins (Green)

Mr Firkins has lived in Brentford for more than 30 years. He works in IT for a mobile phone company.

In his roles as Hounslow Green Party coordinator and secretary of the Green Party energy policy working group, Mr Firkins brought a Climate Crisis petition and an accompanying speech to Hounslow borough council in June 2019 with the result that the council joined other borough councils and the Mayor of London to declare a climate emergency.

Running for election to Brentford Borough council in 2018 Mr Firkins said: “The Green Party isn’t just another political party. Green politics is about ensuring we continue to have a habitable world for humankind to live in.

“In making decisions about the transport we use daily, the housing we live in, the stuff we buy and the food we eat, we need to consider the natural world.

“Climate change and other pollution is a real threat to our way of life but also an opportunity to move towards a healthier, cleaner, peaceful, fairer, sustainable and more beautiful place to live, work and play.”

Jane Keep (Conservative)

Ms Keep is the deputy chair political for Richmond Park and North Kingston Conservatives, chair of Kew Ward Conservatives, and vice-chair (events) of Conservative Health.

She has worked in the NHS for 40 years, at a national and local level, with a strong focus on patient care and supporting staff.

Ms Keep has worked at universities for 20 years, and more recently, has started working in the voluntary sector too.

She has said that she works with people for the love of it, and that she enjoys walking, nature, and preparing delicious and nutritious meals.

Seema Malhotra (Labour and Cooperative party)

In recognition of their joint values, the Labour Party and the Cooperative party have an electoral agreement to stand joint candidates in elections.

Putting power in the hands of customers through cooperatives of all kinds is a priority for the Cooperative party.

Their website shows that the Credit Union, the living wage, Climate Change, and cooperative housing rank high in their concerns.

Ms Malhotra (pictured above) lives in Chelsea and went to school in Hounslow.

She is a graduate in politics and philosophy, and has a postgraduate degree in business and information studies.

Ms Malhotra has worked as a management consultant for Accenture and PriceWaterhouseCoopers.

She was founder of the Fabian Women’s Network, and as an MP, she held the posts of: shadow minister for preventing violence against women and girls, and Shadow Chief Secretary to the Treasury.

Hina Malik (Liberal Democrats)

With a BA in aeronautical and aerospace engineering, Ms Malik could be a candidate with a mission.

She also has qualified teacher status, and has worked as CEO/director for a diverse set of companies including Fine Recruitment, Manifesto Watch, Techmaids, and My Eco Planet.

At present she is an entrepreneur, with Hina Malik Ltd, founded Voice of Women Society, and is a board member for International Trade Chamber of Commerce, Hounslow.

She also has connections with companies supporting women in Pakistan.

Martyn Nelson (Brexit Party)

Mr Nelson’s Twitter has tweets on scrapping HS2, refusing to pay any money to the EU on leaving, and reinvesting the foreign aid budget back into the UK.

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