PPC Profile: Chinyelu Onwurah

Full Name: Chinyelu Susan Onwurah

Age: 44

From: Newcastle-upon-Tyne

PPC for: Newcastle Central

Website: www.chi4central.com

Selection Result: 65:55 in the third round

Member of the Labour Party since: 1981

CV:
I was born in Wallsend and grew up in Newcastle before graduating in 1987 from Imperial College with a degree in Electrical Engineering. I am currently employed in the public sector focusing on the costs and benefits of superfast broadband. In between I have worked in the UK, France, Nigeria and the US, mainly developing and implementing new technologies for emerging markets – for example in Nigeria I helped MTN roll out one of the first national Global Systems for Mobile networks in Africa.

Outside of work I have a strong campaigning background: against the Federation of Conservative Students at Imperial, on the National Executive of Anti Apartheid and ACTSA (Action for Southern Africa).

I have an MBA from Manchester Business School and am on the International Advisory Board of the Open University Business School.

I was inspired to go into politics because:
I grew up on a council estate in Newcastle, my mother was a Labour party activist and political discussion was always a part of our home life.

I joined the party when I was sixteen, for the same reason as most people – to make a difference. I was always active in politics and campaigned for causes such as Anti Apartheid. I am also very committed to promoting education; it has made such a difference to my life. But it is mainly through my career as an engineer that I have made a difference. I know how important technology and good quality jobs are for the future.

When Jim Cousins decided to retire at the next election, I recognised that this was my opportunity to make a difference by representing the city I grew up in, and where I learnt the values which have fashioned my life.

My main policy interests are:
Science, technology and industry; promotion of justice and equality of opportunity; poverty reduction – both in the UK and internationally.

Three things I think should be in the next Labour manifesto are:
1 – A package of measures to strengthen and diversify our industrial base, to transform the UK’s economy and enhance the number and range of jobs by strengthening science and technology, promoting the commercialisation of ideas and, in particular, enabling the UK and the North East to play a leading role in the ‘green’ revolution. This should include:

* Encouraging students to choose engineering and technology in schools, further education colleges and universities. Recognition that these courses are often more challenging and intense and that institutions specialising in these areas, and the students who choose them, need more support. This would include science and technology student bursaries covering formal and vocational study.

* Encouraging investment in new technologies which can address the challenges of climate change and an aging population as well as helping to create new jobs. This should cover investment in research, through the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council, as well as the encouragement of, and investment in, small businesses which are the engines of growth. Tax incentives for related small businesses should be part of the Science City programme funding.

* Linking infrastructure programmes with technology investment where appropriate, for example in guidelines and requirements for smart metering, carbon neutral housing, and new transport links.

2 – A living wage:
Labour has done much to lift people out of poverty by introducing the minimum wage, working tax credits and increasing pensions. But there are still too many people living in poverty, which blights individual lives and fractures our society. We should announce measures to ensure that over time everyone in this country has enough to live on, initially through public sector measures and incentives, such as making a decent living wage a requirement for public sector contracts and requiring large companies to publish anonymised salary information. But we should clearly signal we will consider more aggressive measures if these do not succeed.

3 – Food policy reform:
What we eat is an essential part of what we are and drives health outcomes. It is also the basis of a complex global industry where decisions made in one part of the world can be a matter of life and death in another, and where there are strong links between the production of food and the degradation of our environment. We cannot resolve the issues in the entire global food supply chain but we can take measures to ensure that our agricultural policy, and our subsidies and investment, support sustainable farming practices here and abroad. We can also seek to address the practices of supermarkets so that they cannot abuse power in the market to the detriment of our farmers and consumers.

I think people should vote for me because:
I have always sought to live my life by the strong Labour values I learnt as a child in Newcastle. My own background demonstrates the difference that they can make for people; educated, housed and often supported by the state, I went on to build a successful international career in science and technology, and have hopefully made a contribution through this work.

I believe social justice, equality of opportunity and compassion should be the basis for a political partnership between people and government, and that only representative democracy can deliver that.

But more than that, my ideals and beliefs have been tested practically in the real world. As an engineer I have lived and worked in Europe, the US and Africa, and travelled widely in Asia. I know from this that politics is often about hard choices and difficult priorities, but that if Government gets them right, then it can deliver huge benefits to people.

Through my work, I have a wealth of experience to help me make these difficult decisions and detailed knowledge of how to implement complex policies and projects. I understand the world of business and I know both the contribution it can make to a society of opportunity, and also the limits of the free market in bringing about social justice.

I know where I come from, why I have chosen to enter politics and what I want to achieve: a better and more equitable future for Newcastle and the country.

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