PPC Profile: Allan Davies

Full Name: Allan Davies

Age: 37

From: Basildon, Essex

PPC for: Basildon and Billericay (new boundaries)

Website: www.davies4labour.co.uk

Selection Result: I had some stiff competition but I won by a narrow margin.

Member of the Labour Party since: 1999

CV:
I went to Woodlands Comprehensive School in Basildon and then took up an apprenticeship in Electronic Engineering at GEC Sensors, Basildon. After getting my qualification I moved departments into procurement and customer services. After several years there I became a Postman during the late 1990s.

In 2001 I was offered the position of Manager at a local market and ran the market for 3 years. During this period I was elected as a district councillor in Basildon and I am currently the Deputy Leader of the Labour main opposition group there.

In 2005 I worked as a First Contact Officer for JobcentrePlus in Chelmsford and in September of that year I went into full time education as a mature student at the University of East London. I graduated in 2008 with a BA (Hons) in International Politics. I am now a Communications Manager.

I was inspired to go into politics because:
During my time as a postman I delivered mail to areas that were suffering from some real deprivation. I saw homes and flats with no carpets or wallpaper and children running in streets strewn with rubbish with no shoes on. I was motivated to do something about it. The values of the Labour Party best reflected my Christian values of social justice and poverty reduction so I signed up and then within weeks also joined the Christian Socialist Movement.

My main policy interests are:
Housing, health and international development.

Three things I think should be in the next Labour manifesto are:
1 – Social housing: It is crucial that we build more houses, and not just flats, for our communities. Families should have houses with gardens for their children to play in and not be crammed into box-like flats – which seems to be a disturbing trend in recent years. Of course there are issues with Green Belt land and I think more needs to done to promote the use of Brownfield land.

2 – Health: I would like to see a much greater distribution of resources aimed at the most deprived areas in the UK. Although much has been done by this government there is always more to do. As an example, in Basildon in 2009, men from the least deprived area can expect to live 8 years more than those from the most deprived area. This shocking statistic is replicated up and down the country and is unacceptable.

3 – International Development: The Labour government has done much to help the poorest people across the globe. Yet with a threat from the Tories to clamp down on International aid I feel that our manifesto should proudly promote everything this government has done and place a renewed emphasis on meeting and exceeding the international agreed targets on aid.

I think people should vote for me because:
I am a local man born and bred in the area, who has shared the experiences of the people of Basildon and Billericay. I went to school in Basildon, I have worked in Basildon and I am a Basildon Councillor. I have a young family with children going through primary school and I share the same concerns about the future. I use the same shops, surgeries, facilities as everybody else and I believe that I am the person best placed to deliver a voice for the people who live here.

AOB:
I represent the East of England on the Christian Socialist Movement’s National Executive. I’m also a member of Unite, Compass and the Co-op Party.