Two Greenwich Labour councillors have quit the party and will sit as independents until the next election on May 7, The Greenwich Wire has revealed.
Read the full story: Two more councillors quit Greenwich Labour while ten women stand down
LAKSHAN SALDIN, a Charlton Hornfair councillor, has posted this message for his residents:
I am writing to inform you that I have resigned from the Labour Party and the Labour group of Greenwich Borough Council and will sit as an independent councillor for Charlton Hornfair.
My decision to resign from the Labour group comes after a panel appointed by the London-wide Labour Party decided I was not enough in line with the national party leadership to stand as its candidate in next year’s council elections. It follows logically that I should no longer sit as a Labour councillor.
I have always sought to put residents first and, now I am free from the restrictions of being part of the council’s Labour Group, will be able to fight even harder for your needs and concerns without my hands being tied by the factional priorities of the party’s national and local leadership.
I stood for election in 2022 because I believe everyone in our society has the right to feel safe, have equal access to opportunities, be treated with respect and have their voices heard. I will continue to bring my energy to ensuring everyone is heard, not just those able to shout loudest.
By working with the police, the Safer Neighbourhoods Panel and through the establishment of groups like the Friends of Hornfair Park we have brought down crime and anti-social behaviour. By setting-up community groups and networks we have provided kids summer activity programmes, community events, and brought the Junior Parkrun to our area. And we have held the council to account over the decisions it has made.
I am proud to represent a diverse and vibrant area of London where thriving communities have been built by people from all corners of the earth.
The UK needs leaders who will stand up for British values of welcome, inclusivity, diversity and fairness, and celebrate all the people who keep our hospitals, schools and economy running, wherever they come from.
I am very grateful to residents, groups and members of the local Labour Party who have offered me their support over recent weeks and expressed their anger at the party’s decision. It has been an honour and a privilege to work alongside so many community champions over the past three years and I look forward to continuing to work together outside the strictures of the party.
I was elected to represent you and will continue to do so to the best of my ability.
ANN-MARIE COUSINS, an Abbey Wood councillor, posted this message for residents in her ward: I always have and always will put the Community First. This is where my heart is.
However, in the Royal Borough of Greenwich, Labour councillors who really want to serve their diverse communities and show compassion on impact of international issues, such as what is happening to Palestinians in the Israel-Gaza war and the exploitation of minerals and people in the Democratic Republic of Congo, are silenced by the Labour Party’s machinery and risk disciplinary action if they wish to speak out for their residents.
That is why I am resigning from the Labour Party and will continue to serve my Abbey Wood constituents as an independent councillor. With the Labour shackles broken asunder, I can be a loud and proud humanitarian voice for our diverse communities.
In the 1979 general election, my mother escorted me to the polling station and pointed to where I should put my ‘X’. It was only later, when I researched what the Labour Party was all about, that I realised back then it really did represent my priorities and the principles I was taught.
I benefited from a free NHS, my education – up to my first BSc (Hons) degree – was cost-free, I was respected at work and paid a decent wage for my hard labour. Along with other equity/ equality issues, these are the principles I believe in.
Nearly 40 years later, when I was elected as a Labour councillor in 2018, I became painfully aware that we are still fighting for the same things and more, both nationally and locally in Abbey Wood.
We are still fighting for dignity and respect, and our priorities remain the same; stopping the privatisation of the NHS, promoting economic growth, ending poverty, combatting the cost-of-living crisis which has produced “the working poor”, and rejecting inequality in service delivery.
But the current Labour Party is not honouring its historical legacy promises and is simply taking our votes for granted, while at the same time disrespecting our community values, voices and visions.
Campaigning in the recent Shooters Hill by-election really brought into focus just how angry many voters are with Labour. It was painful to hear an elder say that she would rather stick pins in her eyes than vote Labour. That is not how I wish to honour the memory of my mother, our elders or pass on a legacy to my children (and hopefully grandchildren).
Standing up for our diverse communities, showing empathy for all our residents and being able to talk about their concerns is why I joined the Labour Party and became a councillor.
However, if I want to be able to openly and honestly represent my constituents, to be my authentic self, I can no longer remain a member of the current Labour Party. It has not been an easy decision, but politics is about choices. And I choose my community.
Read the full story: Two more councillors quit Greenwich Labour while ten women stand down
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