UKIP’s mayoral candidate for the 2016 elections will be selected in the coming days and weeks. Breitbart London has speculated on the runners and riders for the contest, and has contacted all the candidates to ask them why they’d be best for the position.
This response is from David Kurton, a scientist and international chemistry lecturer. The answers follow:
Breitbart London (BL): What makes you the best person to represent UKIP in London in 2016?
David Kurten (DK): I am passionate about bringing sovereignty and liberty back to the people rather than seeing it being taken away. I support direct democracy, the right of recall and the preservation of our heritage, communities and green spaces. I will cut through the politically correct nonsense which abounds in government, and galvanise support in London to vote for the UK to leave the EU.
BL: If it were a straight choice, would you rather be a London Assembly member, or UKIP’s Mayoral Candidate?
DK: A difficult question. The bookies odds on UKIP winning the Mayoral Election are significantly lower than for some of the other parties.
However, the Mayoral candidate will be a figurehead for the campaign in London, and a good candidate may increase the number of seats UKIP gets on the London Assembly. I hope to lead the campaign and get enough seats on the Assembly so that UKIP holds the balance of power in London.
BL: Uber — are you for it, or against it?
DK: I’m for it. Uber is innovative and responds to a demand in the market. There’s enough room in the market for both traditional Hackney Carriages and Uber. It shouldn’t be stopped, but it does need to be properly regulated so that it pays proper rates of corporation tax.
BL: Tube strikes and union drivers. What’s the solution?
DK: Ultimately, the network needs to be fully automated, beginning with the lines which will be part of the 24 hour network. Paris Line 1 was recently automated and retrofitted with safety screens, so it could be done here too. In the short term, the most important thing is to keep the tubes running. Tough negotiations need to be had with the unions to get the 24 hour network up and running, and to make the tube run first and foremost in the interests of Londoners.
BL: How do you feel Boris has done as Mayor? What would you keep, what would you change?
DK: Boris has been a good ambassador for London. He is well liked, instantly recognisable, and has improved the image and standing of the city around the world. Obviously, the Olympic Games in 2012 were a triumph for the city, and passed off smoothly. I would not have spent some of the money Boris has wasted on meaningless white elephant projects like the Air Line, water cannon, ‘Boris Island’ Airport and the Garden Bridge. Politicians often forget that the money they have in their budget is not their own – it belongs to the people, who pay taxes. This is something that I won’t forget.
BL: What are the best things about London, in your estimation?
DK: London is the greatest city in the world and is the global centre for art, business, culture, sport and innovation. You can get anything here, be anyone here, and feel that you are right in the centre of the action!
BL: What are the worst things about London?
DK: The overcrowding. The population of London has risen from 7.3 million in 2001 to 8.7 million today. Roads, tubes, schools, GP surgeries and hospitals are all bursting at the seams, there is not enough decent affordable housing, and people are rightly very frustrated by it.
BL: You’ve not been involved in front line politics for that long have you? What do you think that says about a candidate nowadays?
DK: I think it a good thing to have a mixture of people who are experienced politicians, and people like me with other experiences and backgrounds.
Sometimes, people who have been involved in politics for a long time have no experience or understanding of what it is like to live on a council estate, or to be a teacher or a builder, or to struggles with debt or low wages. I grew up on a council estate, and I have been a teacher for 15 years, so I know what it is like to live and survive in London on a job with an ‘average’ salary.
BL: A lot of people talk about racism within UKIP – how do you deal with these criticisms levelled at your party?
DK: A good question! I usually answer with humour. I am blessed with melanin, so if anyone levels that criticism I say ‘UKIP isn’t racist; I love white people!’
BL: I’ve noticed that you’re one of the few people actively talking about TTIP. Can you explain your position on this, and why you think it is so important?
DK: TTIP is the trade deal being negotiated in secret between the U.S and EU. The most pernicious thing about it is the inclusion of ISDS, which will effectively set up ‘corporate courts’ where corporations can sue nations for unlimited amounts of money if they introduce legislation they don’t like. It effectively gives corporations the right of veto over new laws and elevates them to being more powerful than countries.
It was wrong for previous governments of the U.K. to cede sovereignty to the E.U., and it will be doubly wrong for the E.U. to cede that sovereignty to corporations.
My fear is that TTIP will be ratified before the in/out referendum on the E.U. in 2016/2017. If that happens, the result of the referendum could be effectively meaningless, as Cameron will have locked the U.K. into TTIP and given away all of our sovereignty permanently, regardless over whether Britain remains in the E.U. or not. If more people are aware of the implications TTIP will have for the nations it involves, we are more likely to take back and keep our liberty.
You can find out more about David Kurten at www.davidkurten.net
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