The UKIP members of Battersea have placed their trust in me, Christopher Howe, and elected me as their parliamentary candidate for next year’s general election in May. My roots are in Battersea where I was born and raised. I went to primary and secondary school in the borough. I left the area in the mid-eighties when I married a girl from Poland. That was thirty years ago. I currently live in Sutton. My late father, Victor, was a founding member of the original Battersea Society in 1966. The Society was formed by a group of friends to save the Municipal Town Hall (also Theatre) on Lavender Hill (now the Battersea Arts Centre) from demolition, as decided by the Labour led Council of the day.
Nothing stands still. Our generation’s needs and aspirations are no different from those of our parents, and of those before them. Finding work, raising a family, and educating ones children. But today, largely through chronic mismanagement, and poor judgement decisions, we find ourselves living in a far more stressful world than our parents could ever have imagined. It’s time to address the lifestyle problems we all face, which are not borne out of choice but of necessity.
The actions of my father and his pals to save Battersea Town Hall for future generations have not been in vain. The building currently serves the whole community as an arts centre. However, in more recent times there have been acts of cultural vandalism of a different, more subtle kind. Not the violent swing of a wrecking-ball, but by the insidious creep of the political engineers and theorists at work, ably supported by the words and acts of deceitful and disingenuous politicians, and media. The dismantling of a way of life and culture that has evolved through centuries will be levelled and cemented over; unless there is a change of project manager, supported by patriotic and able engineers and workers, from all walks of life. To be a true patriot is to hold the government to account. It is now time for us to act by electing a majority UKIP government.
There is every reason to look to the future with optimism. This can be achieved through honest debate and a willingness to engage with UKIP, in a calm and measured way, for the sake of our country.
I would like to hold a series of public meetings to discuss a wide range of important issues. Professionals and practitioners from within their field of expertise will be invited to address the meetings. These will cover such vital issues as the future of our National Health Service – which must be kept as a public service and not privatised – and other crucial issues, such as our economy, transport, energy and education. The discussions will also cover European Union membership and immigration.
UKIP’s libertarian rallying call to all the people of Battersea, and indeed our country, is the same as Battersea’s motto, found on Battersea’s coat of arms: “Non Mihi, Non Tibi, Sed Nobis”, meaning “Not for me, not for thee, but for us.
Christopher Howe
