I have been selected to stand as the Parliamentary Candidate for Hammersmith when the next general election is called.
As your Liberal Democrat Candidate I have a vision for Hammersmith.
Not a vision where the property prices are the 4th highest in London but where over 40% of housing stock do not meet national 'decent homes' standard. Nor one where increasing number of parents have to send their children to schools outside of the borough because of their lack of faith in the local schools (59% of children leave school with less than 5 good GCSEs including Maths and English).
And despite Hammersmith being in a dynamic transport hub served by a network of tube, rail and buses we find ourselves victims to the inefficiencies of transport authorities controlled by the Labour Government and now Tory dominated City Hall. One only has to think of the unnecessary closure of the vital Shepherd's Bush central line station, not to mention the debacle of a brand new railway platform at White City built 16 inches too narrow to pass the regulators!
You deserve better than that. I want to fight for better local services and ensure that the interests of local residents come first. With your help I can, so let's make it happen for Hammersmith!
"I was interested to see first hand the transformation of a contaminated brown field site into an Olympic mecca. What had started as a mere hope, then a dream come true in Singapore in 2005 with the award of the Olympics 2012 to London as host city is now gradually becoming a reality" said Merlene.
On 16 June Merlene addressed students at Fulham Cross Girls' School about equalities issues and encouraged more young women to become involved in politics. Currently less than 20 percent of the MPs in Parliament are women, and where it comes to ethnic minority women, the figures are even more shocking, namely, only 2 MPs or 0.3%!
Merlene joined Euro Candidate Dinti Batstone and Lib Dem London Assembly Transport Spokesperson Caroline Pidgeon to launch a campaign for one hour bus tickets for London bus users at Hammersmith bus station.
"I was pleased to see your coverage of rumours about the Council's intention to sell Queen Caroline Estate ("Don't let our estate get bulldozed by greedy developers", 14 May 2009).
Written by Merlene Emerson and published in Challenge, The Magazine of the Green Liberal Democrats on Mon 25th May 2009
Some things are plain to see such as graffiti, neglected estates or general grot spots. However, in the case of the quality of the air we breathe, it is less apparent where there has been a breach of safety standards set by the World Health Organisation. Perhaps this is also why it is easier for the Government and local authorities to ignore the warning signs.
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The views expressed are those of the party, not of the service provider.
Fawcett Society interview with Merlene Emerson on representation of ethnic minority women in politics in the UK (April 2008).
