Why I defected from Respect

Earlier this year Cllr Ahmed Hussain in Tower Hamlets defected from Respect to the Conservatives. Here he explains why.

I was involved in the local community for number of years and took on issues with the local Housing Association and the local council.

People were genuinely happy with me and the work I did for hem and asked me to stand for election.Which I did. Unfortunately at that time the only party that they wanted me to join was the Respect Party. But right after the election, within three months of becoming a councillor, I realised that I have joined the wrong party. A party which only hopes that there is a war for them to benefit from.

I have been seeking for an alternative party ever since and then finally decided to join the Conservative party as I felt I would be best placed there with my values and political principals. I also learned that the Tory values are the same of that of a Bangladeshi, and at some extent of a Muslim. The other biggest thing that attracted me was the internal freedom within the party and any one can speak out.   while at the same time I found that the Conservative group was very organised and united in their decisions once made, which is very important in moving forward.

I have served as lead member in the Overview and Scrutiny committee and various other committees over the last two years as a councillor and have raised numerous issues from health to housing. As I work for the NHS and have the insight of the health structure and problems, this can be seen as the strongest area of my expertise.

In the near future my political ambition is to help achieve an increase in the Tory seats here in Tower Hamlets which always has been a Labour council. My prediction is that we will gain eight more seats on top of the existing 8 seats and have the two MP seats for the first time in history. A big wish list but this can be done with the right candidates and a bit of luck.