As a local councillor in Harrow, I am reminded every day of the harm that this government is doing to our country. And every day I am disappointed to see the Labour party tear itself apart while the Tories continue their assault on people in my borough and get away with it. We need to pull ourselves together as a party, become an effective opposition, and sharpen up our act in order to show we are ready to govern. Because, if we do not, we are just letting people down and giving them no choice for the future.
Harrow is mainly made up of first and second-generation immigrants who have clear expectations of what they want from their country. They want to work hard, give something back to their community and ensure their children succeed in life. They should be natural Labour supporters. Indeed, from 1997 to 2010 they were. But then we stopped listening to them. We stopped valuing their contributions as small business owners and as the glue that binds different communities together. We did not listen to their fears about their children being denied the opportunities to work hard and succeed. We did not give them a vision that they felt a part of and could believe in.
I live in Harrow east where we recently suffered a considerable defeat and rejection of what Labour was offering. They rejected us because they lost faith in our ability to run the economy. But they also rejected us because we stopped speaking to them about what was important to them and focused only on what was important to us. By continuing this same discussion as part of our leadership election, we are showing the country that we have not learnt anything from such a defeat.
Now we have a chance to get it right. Now we have a chance to show the British public that we understand the real challenges facing this country and that we have the solutions. We have a candidate who can talk to the country and use our core Labour values to tackle the real issues of the day.
I believe that Liz Kendall is that candidate who will lead us to become an effective opposition and will get us ready for power in 2020.
We need a candidate who offers fresh thinking and solutions. One of our biggest challenges is the issue of low pay and the welfare dependency that it creates. It is about time that we tackle this and Kendall’s pledge to expand the remit of the low pay commission, working with businesses and trade unions to implement a real living wage sector by sector is very welcome.
Tackling inequality from birth is the right approach and so is dealing with the ticking time bomb that is adult social care. And when it comes to young people Kendall has hit the nail on the head focusing on the maintenance grant to support students through university.
Combining all of these with a big shake-up of political power makes for a very exciting agenda. Local communities taking decisions about their local areas
The Liz Kendall offer is one that tackles the big issues facing our country and offers real solutions. It shows we are ready to govern responsibly. It is a winning agenda that is right for individuals, right for communities and right for the country as a whole.
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Kiran Ramchandani is a cabinet member for the London borough of Harrow council, and writes in a personal capacity
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