Kensington and Bayswater general election 2024 candidates explain what they'll do if voted in

Kensington and Bayswater is a new constituency which is made up of most of the former seat of Kensington and now includes Bayswater and Lancaster Gate from the City of Westminster. The seat is currently held by Tory MP Felicity Buchan, who won it in 2019 by 150 votes.

Before that, the seat was won by former Labour member Emma Dent Coad by 20 votes. According to Get Voting, the Labour Party is tipped to narrowly win the seat. Below is the full list of candidates in alphabetical order according to their surname, and what they would do if elected.

READ MORE: 'Posh' West London borough that could swing to Labour for the first time

Green Party - Mona Adam

A councillor for the Golborne ward in Kensington and Chelsea, Mona Adam defected from Labour to the Green Party earlier this year. Describing herself as a seasoned social worker and grassroots advocate, with experience running the community group Shaman PR, Cllr Adam’s webpage lists her focuses as the cost of living crisis, housing, NHS, immigration, and homelessness.

She told MyLondon: “With my commitment to a compassionate and sustainable future, as your MP, I will drive meaningful change in our society.”

Conservative Party - Felicity Buchan

Felicity has been a resident in Kensington and Chelsea for almost 30 years and said it has been an immense privilege to represent the constituency in Parliament. She said she has worked on almost 30,000 constituent pieces of casework and correspondence during her time representing the seat.

She describes herself as a strong local champion who has led campaigns to get more police officers in Kensington; making sure Kensington and Bayswater’s tube stations do not close erratically and pressuring Thames Water to invest in flooding resilience. She is currently the minister for housing and homelessness.

Reform UK - Marc Burca

Marc Burca wants to cut stamp duty on purchases below £750k and end income tax for those earning below £20k, according to his campaign website . He wants to cut VAT on energy bills, scrap net-zero commitments, and abolish inheritance tax for homes less than £2m.

Marc also supports reducing corporation tax and leaving the European Convention on Human Rights. He wants to “motivate” two million people back into work and freeze “non-essential” immigration and return migrants “back to France,” according to his website.

Marc said he joined Reform UK to ensure his children and grandchildren lived in a “free society”. Marc campaigned for the Conservatives when Margaret Thatcher was in power.

Marc recently came under fire are appearing to suggest convicted sex-trafficker Ghislaine Maxwell received a “harsh” sentence by courts in the US and suggested people should be more supportive of Prince Andrew.

Marc told the LDRS his comment was made years ago and came after reading newspaper reports into Maxwell’s sentencing.

He claimed she had been given a “very harsh” sentence for introducing a 17-year-old “prostitute friend” to important people. He then accused the press of withholding the names of passengers on Jeffrey Epstein’s private jet, the Lolita Express.

Independent - Emma Dent Coad

Emma Dent Coad has been on Kensington and Chelsea Council since 2006, and was Labour MP for Kensington between 2017 and 2019, elected days before the Grenfell Tower fire. Her work in supporting affected families and efforts to improve fire safety legislation characterised her time in parliament.

She has a background in design, planning and architecture and in 2022 she published a book 'One Kensington' based on her time on the Council before, during and after the fire. She resigned from the Labour Party in 2023 due to what she claimed was the abandonment of social policies and a rise in racism.

She said: “Decent and affordable housing is the foundation of our well-being, improves life outcomes and aids good health. Ensuring young families can afford to stay in the area with local facilities for all ages, designed and maintained with environmental concerns at their heart, makes for more successful neighbourhoods and improves health and life expectancy.”

Liberal Democrats - William Houngbo

William Houngbo was born in the Benin Republic and raised in France. He moved to the UK in 1997 to start a career in business, and is now an academic researching food insecurity in West Africa. He lives in London where he is raising his youngest daughter.

He joined the Liberal Democrats in 2010 and served as a local councillor for four years - as well as a vice chair and diversity lead of the London Liberal Democrats. William believes that fostering strong communities is vital to improving quality of life - and has been one of the key trustees of Active Communities Network (ACN) since the pandemic.

He is active in many residents’ associations and the Kensington Society, taking on casework for people in difficult situations. William’s top priorities in this campaign are to tackle the housing crisis and restore community policing for Kensington & Bayswater. He calls himself the "real alternative" for residents.

He passionately believes that the local and international are interdependent and is pushing for Britain to fix its broken relationship with Europe to support the local and national economy. William has promised to fight for what he called a "fair deal" for Kensington & Bayswater that restores trust in politics to solve the problems.

In his spare time William is an avid cyclist and runner, and has successfully completed both the New York City Marathon and the London Marathon.

Party of Women - Una O’Mahony

Una O’Mahony said she has been campaigning for women since she was a teenager, according to her campaign website . She wants to repeal the Gender Recognition Act 2004 and remove “gender reassignment” as a protected characteristic in the Equalities Act, which she claims discriminates against women.

Una, who identifies as a lesbian, has railed against what she called “transgender ideology” in schools and public institutions. Her website reads: “At Party Of Women, we're the only party who dare to be honest and say no one is born in the wrong body.

"We feel we need to alert parents and challenge politicians to make sure our children are safeguarded and we retain female language for women. If we can't say what a woman is, we can't have any women's rights.”

Party of Women was founded by Kellie-Jay Keen and focuses on gender-related social issues

Christian Peoples Alliance - Roger Phillips

Roger Phillips was the candidate for the Christian Peoples Alliance in the 2019 election where he secured just 70 votes, according to Who Can I Vote For? He has worked in retail as a personal shopper, advising on Saville Row and top line British shoes for close to 14 years.

He lives near Grenfell Tower and works closely with Kensington and Chelsea’s Grenfell hub estate repairs team as a representative and goodwill ambassador. He has been active with the pro-life movement in Whitehall and Parliament Square.

He is committed to supporting families. The Christian Peoples Alliance supports grants for couples getting married and having children.

According to campaign material, it wants to introduce a 5pc turnover tax and cut quangos, which are semi-public administrative bodies outside the civil service but receiving financial support from the government.

Independent - Emperor of India Prince Ankit Love

Ankit Love has run in several elections since 2016 and received fewer than 60 votes each time, according to Who Can I Vote For? He ran in the 2016 London mayoral election for the One Love Party. In 2017, he ran for the parliamentary seat of the Cities of London and Westminster. He ran for the Rutherglen and Hamilton West and the Mid Bedfordshire by-elections last year as well as the Wellingborough by-election this year.

Labour Party - Joe Powell

Joe Powell is an anti-corruption expert who has spent his life campaigning for social justice and democracy in West London, Britain and around the world, according to his website. Joe has promised to work towards a windfall tax on oil and gas company profits to provide added support for households and business.

He has vowed to campaign to keep Notting Hill Police Station in public hands and supports Labour’s plans to put 13,000 extra neighbourhood police and PCSOs on Britain’s streets.

Joe is an active campaigner in Kensington and last year founded the Kensington Against Dirty Money campaign to push national and local governments to take action on inequality by reducing corrupt wealth in the borough, going after empty homes, and investing more in social housing.

He recently launched a campaign to reopen Kensington Palace Gardens after it was shut by the Crown Estate due to “speedy” cyclists.

Rejoin EU - John Stevens

John Stevens is a former Conservative Member of the European Parliament, who left the party over their stance on Europe, according to his campaign website. He is campaigning to rejoin the EU and believes rejoining the Single Market is the simplest way to kick-start Britain’s economy.

He said: “I want to give voters in Kensington a choice that the main parties refuse to offer. A chance to boost the economy and get the UK back on track.” John said he has lived in Bayswater for a large part of his life.

The party proposes greater military integration with the EU and says it supports freedom of movement in the EU. It also wants to legislate “greater entitlement” to efficient treatment, pandemic preparedness and access to skilled EU workers in the NHS and to coordinate climate change policies with Brussels.

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