Actor Ainslie is Greens’ pick for Streatham and Croydon North

The Green Party has named Scott Ainslie as their parliamentary candidate for the new seat of Streatham and Croydon North.

Ainslie is a former MEP (remember them?) and has been a councillor in Lambeth since 2014 for St Leonard’s ward, which lies at the heart of the new cross-borough constituency.

Ainslie, an actor as well as an activist, is expected to be the closest rival to Labour’s Steve Reed OBE when the General Election is held. While Lambeth’s Greens lost three of their five council seats at the 2022 local elections, Brixton Town Hall now has zero Tories…

With Labour suspending Lambeth councillors for daring to call for a ceasefire in Gaza, dissatisfaction with Keir Starmer’s party on this and a range of other issues could erode the party’s expected dominant position.

Reed’s reputation is well-known in Lambeth, too, where he was council leader until 2012, when he was elected as MP for Croydon North.

Polling by the Daily Mirror showed the Greens in second place in Streatham and Croydon North. The Green Party polled 22% across Lambeth in the 2022 local elections.

“As a councillor over the past 10 years, I have fought tooth and nail for local residents, often putting myself between those who need protecting and the authorities,” Ainslie said.

“For example, I occupied vulnerable people’s homes to prevent bailiffs evicting residents; I have led from the front in organising campaigns to stop demolition of council estates; I was one of the founders of Hands Off Our Common, which prevented a private takeover of public land.

“I have been a constant ally of the survivors of child abuse in Lambeth’s Children’s Homes. I have also successfully worked cross-party to pass the landmark motion on colonial

enslavement.

“My mum brought up my sister and me in a council tower block. The lived experience of this has never left us. It is this humblest of starts in life that drives my quest for social, environmental, racial and economic justice and what makes me a formidable advocate for all.

“All the other parties have had their chances and failed to end child poverty, to insulate people’s homes so they do not have to choose between heating and eating, to protect and invest in our public services, to protect our food crops and planet. It’s time they moved

over and gave the Green Party a chance. We understand, at our core, that economic, racial, social, gender and climate justice are intersectional and structurally entangled, and that there must be equity and justice for all.”

Already declared as candidates for Streatham and Croydon North are Croydon councillor Claire Bonham for the LibDems and Anthony Boutall, who will do well not to lose the Conservative Party’s deposit…

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