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My Political Journey

My political journey didn't involve a map and compass, but perhaps it should have!

A journey.

Prior to standing as a candidate, I went on quite the political journey. I thought it might be interesting for others to have a read about my political journey to see whether they can identify similarities in their own position.

Very Early Days

I grew up in a very Conservative area, and as a result that was my natural position. To my shame, I participated in the voting process without really understanding any issues, apart from the fact that I was informed that “Conservative good, Labour bad”. In other words, I was the result of a successful (mis)information campaign. It’s fair to say that my parents were also victims of this, as they genuinely believed that the Conservatives were on their side, despite the fact that recent decades have not really had any examples of policies introduced by the Conservatives that have helped anyone but the wealthy.

Apathy

Once I had some experience of the world outside my bubble, I became disillusioned with politics. I fell into the trap of believing that “they’re all the same” and that my vote was meaningless. I call this a trap because our vote is the only way that we can have a meaningful impact on day to day politics. We can protest, but protests can be ignored. We can strike, but strikes can be ignored (and indeed can be declared illegal if the current Bill is made law). But our vote cannot be ignored. Combined, our votes can change the country.

Unfortunately we are not in a real democracy at the moment. As such, it is easy to feel like our votes are wasted, but the reality is that until we start only voting for parties which actually support democracy, our vote is only wasted if we don’t use it.

Part of my political journey has been making satirical copies of mostly Tory posters.

Current Conservative poster. Slightly modified…

Reluctance

My political journey didn't include a desert, but it did involve a line drawn in the sand.

Imagine there is a line drawn in this sand…

After years in the political wilderness, I started to realise that my apathy wasn’t helping anyone, least of all me. I was getting annoyed at politicians, but wasn’t offering any sort of solution to the problems I was encountering. At this time I started to look more into what all the major parties in my constituency were trying to achieve. I found myself aligning most with the Liberal Democrats, with Greens and Labour not too far behind. After some analysis, I realised that Labour wasn’t right because of their stance against Proportional Representation (and later their stance on Brexit), but I did reluctantly vote for them in my local constituency because I felt that the Labour MP was doing a decent job.

Unfortunately for them that support has now ended. I can no longer countenance voting for any party which doesn’t fully embrace democracy, and in this case that means Proportional Representation. Labour’s leadership have come out firmly against this policy despite support for it at their conference last year, which is now one of my non-negotiable lines in the sand.

Passion

So we come to now. Now I am a political candidate, something that took me by surprise as much as anyone else. I came to the conclusion that there are problems with UK politics, but that these problems will only get better if people decide to make those changes. As such, I now want to be part of the solution, not part of the ongoing problem with UK politics.

It’s fair to say that I have undergone several instances of introspection as part of my political journey. What I hope from this post is to show people that I am not campaigning because of what I was brought up to believe politically, nor am I doing so purely out of frustration and reluctance. I have assessed what I believe needs to happen for the UK to progress, and I have thrown my weight behind that.

Final Thought – Help Me

Unfortunately getting elected is neither easy nor cheap. I cannot rely on donations from the super wealthy or from large companies, nor can I expect any help from the unions. As such, I expect to have to fundraise for all my campaign expenses. I will accept any help you want to give as a result, whether that be in for form of volunteering or making a donation. I will also accept good wishes gladly, though pragmatically I can’t promise to use those to help me achieve office.

Hazeena A

Ian, thank you once again for your support. It means a lot.

Thank you so much for [creating this petition] and so amazingly quickly!!!

You did a brilliant job on both the blog and petition. Some of the NHS staff were even impressed with the speed at which you addressed this, and I have had varying positive comments from friends who have read your post.

Hazeena A – Ruislip, Northwood & Pinner Resident

Sheena Y

Having worked with Ian I can say that I found him incredibly transparent and honest which I think would be rare and much needed in today political arena. He is also very clever, direct and a great communicator.

Sheena Y, former co-worker

Andy H

Ian is a very smart individual, but more importantly is honest and truly cares about people.

He is an unselfish individual and would absolutely have the public’s best interests at heart.

Andy H, brother

Luca M

I met Ian a few months ago for the first time and straight away I felt confortable with him and I thought: ” Ok I would trust that guy”.

Luca M, fellow speakers’ club member

Francisco V

Throughout the 12 years I have known Ian, he has always demonstrated to be very bright, kind and upright. I’ve seen all of these attributes in his personal life, for instance, in our sport association he volunteered as treasurer where he improved the overall system and costs as well as championing charitable giving & generous donations. He’ll definitely make a difference in a bigger role in politics.

Francisco V, fellow jū jūtsu instructor and friend

Irene H

You have the moral integrity and high standards in all aspects of the requirements of your potential constituents. You will stand up to injustice and defend those deemed to have had injustice against them. You are committed to environmental change and to look after the less well off in society.

Irene H, mother

Graham C

First and foremost, your personal ethos of kindness and care for others is your top qualification. That you are also highly driven with a need to be productive, and understand very complex matters such as financial systems, makes you stand out.

Graham C, fellow jū jūtsu instructor and friend

Anonymous

You are one of the most principled people that I know. You are committed to making changes that support the most vulnerable in our society and you don’t give up when you know you’re fighting for what’s right.

Anonymous

Helen C

Integrity.
Unlike the rest of us who are disillusioned with the lack of honesty, morals, and the unfair and outdated ‘public schoolboy network’ displayed by this government, you have decided to stand up and make a difference.
Your constituents couldn’t have a better candidate.

Helen C, Aunt

Miles H

Having known Ian for a number of years during which we worked closely as Financial Advisers, I am confident that he would make an excellent MP. Ian is an intelligent man who has the ability to absorb, understand and manage complex information quickly; I have, on many occasions, witnessed him do this whilst retaining the ability to explain it, in a manner which is easy to understand.

I have seen Ian display the courage of his convictions on a professional level, where he has put the clients needs before that of the company and have no doubt he would carry this attitude into public life.

Ian and I have disagreed on politics in the past, but he has always listened carefully to any position and taken time to offer a thoughtful response. If he became an MP I am sure his constituents would benefit from an effective and hard working representative.

Miles H, former co-worker

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