Exclusive: Palestine charity CEO joins high-profile race for south London seat

The leader of a charity providing medical aid to Palestinians has thrown her hat in the ring to be Labour’s candidate for a new south London seat, LabourList can reveal.

Medical Aid for Palestinians chief executive Melanie Ward has joined the selection race in Beckenham and Penge, for which applications close today at midday. She has been backed by the Labour Campaign for International Development.

She joins a list of high-profile candidates who have already declared, including Institute for Public Policy Research associate director Luke Murphy, solicitor Lauren Dingsdale, London Assembly member Marina Ahmad, and Labour Party Irish Society chair Liam Conlon in the race to stand for Labour in the parliamentary constituency. The new seat is thought winnable for Labour.

Beckenham and Penge combines parts of two current seats, Beckenham, held by the Conservative Bob Stewart with a majority of 14,258 at the 2019 general election, and Lewisham West and Penge, held by Labour’s Ellie Reeves by 21,543 votes at the last election. Stewart has been selected as the Conservative candidate in the new seat.

Ward, Dingsdale and Ahmad have previously been Labour parliamentary candidates. Dingsdale contested Middlesbrough South and East Cleveland for Labour in 2019, losing to the Conservative Simon Clarke by 11,626 votes. Ward fought Glenrothes in 2015, losing to the SNP’s Peter Grant by 13,897 votes.

Here are the runners and riders:

Ward: A ‘formidable campaigner’ leading charity’s Gaza response

One shadow cabinet member told LabourList Ward as “one of the outstanding leaders of her generation”, praising her “formidable experience in international development” and commenting that “her experience of working in the Palestinian West Bank and Gaza is needed now more than ever. She would be a strong constituency MP and a powerful national and international voice in the Parliamentary Labour Party.”

Ward, unlike the other candidates, did not publicise her campaign on social media before the application deadline. When approached by LabourList about her campaign, she said: “I’m really grateful to all the local members who have sent messages of support, and who understand that my work for Gaza is my first priority right now.

“I am nonetheless committed to becoming the first Labour MP in the lovely Beckenham and Penge and I look forward to continuing to set out why I am the experienced campaigner who will win on my own doorstep, and turn the area red for generations to come.”

Jess Phillips MP described Ward, who was appointed as CEO of Medical Aid for Palestinians in September 2022 and previously served as David Miliband’s chief of staff at the International Rescue Committee, as “an experienced brave woman”, commenting that “the voice of those with direct experience on the ground of getting aid to war zones has never seemed more vital”.

MAP’s website says its staff were among the first to respond in Gaza to the current emergency, releasing more than $570,000 of drug and other humanitarian stocks to hospitals and shelters. They also report securing and distributing $1.8m of further supplies “in the most challenging of circumstances” including medicines, blankets and hygiene kits. MAP has backed a ceasefire, end to “collective punishment” of Gaza’s population and need to address “root causes…including the now-16-year blockade…and decades-long occupation”.

Ahmad: ‘I’ve almost doubled our vote’

Ahmad contested Beckenham for Labour in 2015, 2017, and 2019, losing to Stewart on all three occasions. Since 2021, she has served as the London Assembly member for Southwark and Lambeth.

She told LabourList: “I’m immensely proud to seek selection for my local seat, where my children have grown up. I’ve already fought it three times when it was a solid Tory seat, where we started off in third place and working with our brilliant team, almost doubled the Labour vote by 2019.

“The addition of the Penge area, where I was also a councillor until 2021, means I feel I’m best placed to quickly unite the new Constituency Labour Party. Working together we can finally finish the job in removing Bob Stewart and the Tories to secure a Labour government.”

Ahmad stood for selection to be Labour’s candidate in Camberwell and Peckham, ultimately losing out to Miatta Fahnbulleh. Fahnbulleh’s selection campaign was run by Melanie Ward.

Conlon: Campaigning for better transport

Conlon, who works for educational organisation Discovery Education, has been endorsed by the Musicians’ Union and the CWU. He has also been endorsed by Labour peer Alf Dubs, who said: “Liam’s strong Labour values and compassion for others will mean he ensures everyone gets the representation they deserve”.

The vice-chair of the Lewisham West and Penge CLP,  he has spoken publicly about being unable to walk as a teenager after a severe accident and pledged to address poor transport links and accessibility for disabled people within 100 days if elected.

Conlon is the son of Keir Starmer’s chief of staff Sue Gray.

Dingsdale: ‘I’m well aware of cost-of-living pressures as a a mum’

Last year Dingsdale ousted the Conservative group leader on Greenwich council, and has represented Eltham Town and Avery Hill ward since then.

She told LabourList: “Beckenham and Penge is a new constituency and needs a fresh voice to take on Bob Stewart. I have the experience of running a difficult parliamentary campaign and a track record of bringing people (members and voters) together.

“As a mum to two small children, I’m well aware of the impact of the Tory cost of living crisis on families, and would use my experience to fight for families across Beckenham and Penge.”

Murphy: Local-born former adviser to top party figures

Murphy, a former Lambeth councillor, made the shortlist to be the Labour candidate in the 2021 Old Bexley and Sidcup by-election, but ultimately lost out to Daniel Francis.

He grew up in the Beckenham and Penge seat, and has campaigned against local ticket office closures and the sell-off of local assets.

Murphy works on housing and environmental policy for the IPPR and his research has influenced Labour policy stances. He was previously a political advisor to members of the Shadow Cabinet during Ed Miliband’s leadership.