Westminster General Election Candidates in Greater Manchester July 4th 2024
Greater Manchester Friends of Palestine has agreed that it is not our role to promote any particular candidate or their party. We have tried to maintain this at our weekend demonstrations – and emergency marches during the week – and people have mostly been very respectful of this. We should be grateful to those who have supported us and complied with doing so.
However, it definitely should be our role to promote Palestine – the voices of Palestinians, the campaigns not just for ceasefire and peace but for boycott actions and for justice, and the demands for an end to the siege and occupation, equality for all and an end to apartheid and ethnic cleansing, and the right to return for all Palestinians. This means that we can press candidates (all of them) to support what we are saying at this time, and we can mobilise support for Palestine in the areas where there are good new candidates standing who genuinely are campaigning for Palestine (and preferably have actually done so for some time). Good examples include Withington and Ashton.
We have produced a pro-Palestine leaflet which can be given out generally in such areas, as well as at vigils, local protests and city centre demonstrations. It might assist with local “hustings”, if members in that area find it helpful. The questions we have included on the leaflet are set out again below for reference. [Please contact us if you want leaflets to give out – contact@gmfriendsofpalestine.org]
To reiterate, it is not up to us to decide which candidates should be supported or voted for. We stick with promoting Palestine.
USE YOUR VOTE FOR PALESTINE IN THIS GENERAL ELECTION JULY 4TH 2024
Here are some suggested questions we can ask all our local candidates in this election –
Stop the Genocide! If elected, will you vote to stop the Genocide in Gaza? Will you back the demands by the international courts for Israel to uphold the “rules based order”?
Stop Arming Israel! If elected, will you vote for an immediate end to UK arms sales to Israel?
Sanctions Now! If elected, will you support the wider campaign of Boycott Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) and will you demand that the Government imposes immediate sanctions on Israel?
Dismantle Illegal Settlements! If elected, will you demand that the Government calls for all illegal settlements on Palestinian Land to be dismantled?
Right of Return! If elected, will you support the right of return of all Palestinian refugees to their land, in line with international law?
Free Palestinian Prisoners! If elected, will you support calls to free all Palestinian political prisoners?
Self-Determination for Palestine! If elected, will you support the immediate recognition of a Palestinian state and the right of self determination for the Palestinian people?.
Ask your Parliamentary candidates if they agree with these statements. Vote for the one that agrees
Justice and Peace for Palestine
Full list of Candidates in Greater Manchester
Some people have had understandable difficulty finding out who or how to contact. The website below may help with this (just go in and put your address and you get the list of local candidates, plus – sometimes – ways to contact them directly).
UK Parliamentary general election candidates in M14 5PN (whocanivotefor.co.uk)
Aroma Hassan
Insta/X/FB: aroma4ashton
Email: aroma4ashton@gmail.com
Constituency: Ashton Under Lyne
Party: Workers Party
“I plan to unseat Angela Rayner who is deputy leader of Labpur party and the one who had the Palestinian brother kicked out of her fundraiser – the video that went viral! #unseatrayner”
[Clash with Lee Huntbach who is standing for the Greens in Ashton, reported to have been supporting Palestine and stood in local elections narrowly losing Ashton Waterloo ward.]
Lizzie Greenwood
Insta: TBC
Email: TBC (07885094185)
Constituency: Manchester Withington
Party: Workers Party
“I’m looking to unseat Jeff Smith – a career politician who’s commitment to Kier Starmer and the “party line” has led him to abstain multiple times on the ceasefire vote – even after meeting with local Palestinians, multiple times. My campaign is one of hope, equality and humanity – and demanding nothing less than the total liberation of Palestine, and end to the UK war machine”
Manchester Central – there are both Green and Workers Party candidates. [But the target is the awful Lucy Powell for Labour, so no argument about opposing her!]
Ekua Buyunu, The Green Party, +44 7534 252942
Parham Hashemi, Workers Party
Bolton North East
Kev Allsop, GMFP member, gained us support of Bolton Trades Council – independent:
https://www.facebook.com/BoltonNorthEastIndependent/videos/647268347485517
Otherwise in Bolton, support has been expressed for Yasmin Qureshi, sitting Labour MP in Bolton South. (This is perhaps similar to how some people feel about Afzal Khan in Manchester Gorton. There could be worse people – but they are still in Labour.)
Heywood and Middleton North reports an Independent, Chris Furlong ( former Labour Party) who is a Palestine supporter but is standing on a local community/ anti poverty ticket. No Greens or WP.
Candidates in Greater Manchester –
Altrincham and Sale West
- Jane Brophy – Liberal Democrats
- Oliver Carroll – Conservative
- Geraldine Coggins – Green Party
- Faisal Kabir – Workers Party
- Connor Rand -Labour
- Paul Swansborough – Reform UK.
Ashton-under-Lyne
- Robert Barrowcliffe – Reform UK
- Lizzie Hacking – Conservative
- Dominic Hardwick – Liberal Democrats
- Aroma Hassan – Workers Party
- Lee Huntbach – Green
- Angela Rayner – Labour
Blackley and Middleton South
- Iftikhar Ahmed – Conservative
- Alison Devine – Reform UK
- Iain Donaldson – Liberal Democrats
- Dylan Lewis-Creser – Green
- Graham Stringer – Labour
Bolton North East
- Hanif Alli – Green
- Kevin Allsop – Independent
- Kirith Entwistle – Labour
- Rebecca Ann Forrest – Lib Dem
- Trevor Jones – Reform UK
- Syeda Misbah Kazmi – Workers Party
- John Partington – Independent
- Adele Kay Warren – Conservative
Bolton South and Walkden
- Don Prof Reis Abraham Halliwell PRF – Independent
- Mohammed Afzal – Conservative
- Gemma Jane Bowker – Lib Dem
- Jack Khan – Workers Party
- Philip Kochitty – Green
- Julie Pattison – Reform
- Yasmin Qureshi – Labour
Bolton West
- Vicki Attenborough – Green
- Phil Brickell – Labour
- Dylan Anthony Evans – Reform
- Chris Green – Conservative
- Patrick Robert McGrath – English Democrats
- Donald Andrew McIntosh – Lib Dem
Bury North
- Mark Alcock – Liberal Democrats
- Shafat Ali – Workers Party
- James Daly – Conservative
- Spencer Donnelly – Independent
- James Frith – Labour
- Anwarul Haq – Independent
- Lynda Rosewell – Reform UK
- Owain Sutton – Green Party
Bury South
- Jeff Armstrong – Reform UK
- Sameera Ashraf – Workers Party
- Michael Elston – Independent
- Stephen Morris – English Democrats
- Andrew Page – Liberal Democrat
- Dan Ross – Communist Party of Britain
- Arnie Saunders – Conservative
- Christian Wakeford – Labour
- Michael Welton – Green Party
Cheadle
- Alexander Drury – Green
- Marcus Farmer – Independent
- Kelly Fowler – Labour
- Tanya Manzoor – Workers Party
- Tom Morrison – Liberal Democrats
- Mary Robinson – Conservative
- Stephen Speakman – Reform UK
Gorton and Denton
- Amir Yousuf Burney – Workers Party
- Amanda Gardner – Green
- Andrew Gwynne – Labour
- Lee Moffitt – Reform
- John Reid – Liberal Democrats
- Ruth Welsh – Conservative
Hazel Grove Paul Athans – Conservative
- John Kelly – Reform UK
- Tim O’Rourke – Social Democratic Party
- Graham Reid – Green
- Lisa Smart – Liberal Democrats
- Claire Vibert – Labour
Heywood and Middleton North
- Elsie Blundell – Labour
- Chris Furlong – Independent
- Steve Potter – Reform
- Tom Shaw – Liberal Democrats
- Laura-Beth Thomspon -Conservative
Leigh and Atherton
- Craig Buckley – English Democrats
- Amelia Jones – Green
- Jo Platt – Labour
- Stuart Thomas – Liberal Democrats
- Michael Winstanley – Conservative
- George Woodward – Reform UK
Makerfield
- Thomas Byer – English Democrats
- Maria Deery – Green Party
- Simon Finkelstein – Conservative
- Robert Kenyon – Reform UK
- Josh Simons – Labour
- John Skipworth – Liberal Democrats.
Manchester Rusholme
- Thirza Asanga-Rae – Green
- Faraz Bhatti – Independent
- Mohhamed Bilal – Workers Party
- Peter Clifford – Communist League
- Afzal Khan – Labour
- Alexandra Marsanu – Conservative
- Joel McGuigan – Reform UK
Manchester Central Ekua Bayunu – Green
- David Brown – Reform UK
- Parham Hashemi – Workers Party
- Sabeena Khan – Independent
- Sebastian Moore – Social Democratic Party
- Chris Northwood – Liberal Democrats
- Lucy Powell – Labour
- Caitriona Rylance – Communist Future
- Scott Smith – Conservative
Manchester Withington Wendy Andrew – Social Democratic Party
- Sam Easterby-Smith – Green
- Sarah Garcia De Bustos – Conservative
- Lizzie Greenwood – Workers Party
- Richard Kilpatrick – Liberal Democrats
- Jeff Smith – Labour
Oldham East and Saddleworth Debbie Abrahams – Labour
- Sam Al-Hamdani – Liberal Democrats
- Jacob Barden – Reform UK
- Nick Buckley – Independent
- Paul Boots Errock – Independent
- Tom Fish – Conservative
- Fesl Reza-Khan – Greens
- Shanaz Saddique – Workers Party
Oldham West, Chadderton and Royton Iqbal Zaffar – Independent
- Hannah Kitching – Liberal Democrats
- Horatio Lovering – Conservative
- Jim McMahon – Labour
- Raja Miah – Independent
- David Silbiger – Reform UK
- Syed Samsuzzaman – Green
- Tony Wilson – Independent
Rochdale
- Paul Ellison – Conservative
- George Galloway – Workers Party
- Michael Howard – Reform
- Andy Kelly – Liberal Democrats
- Martyn Savin – Green
- Paul Waugh – Labour
Salford
- Mustafa Abdullah – Workers Party
- Jake Austin – Liberal Democrats
- Stephen Lewthwaite – Social Democratic Party
- Rebecca Long-Bailey – Labour
- Wendy Olsen – Green
- Hilary Scott – Conservative
- Keith Whalley – Reform UK
Stalybridge and Hyde
- Phil Chadwick – Conservative
- Robert Hodgetts-Haley – Green
- Barbara Kaya – Reform
- Kamala Kugan – Liberal Democrats
- Ian Owen
- Audel Shirin – Workers Party
- Jonathan Reynolds – Labour
Stockport
- Oliver Johnstone – Conservative
- Ayesha Khan – Workers Party
- Wendy Meikle – Liberal Democrats
- Helena Mellish – Green
- Navendu Mishra – Labour
- Lynn Schofield – Reform UK
- Ashley Walker – Stockport Fights Austerity No To Cuts
Stretford and Urmston
- Khalia Chaudry – Workers Party
- Mark Clayton – Liberal Democrats
- Mark Cornes – Conservative
- Charlotte Faulkner – Reform UK
- Daniel Jerrome – Green Party
- Jim Newell – Rejoin EU
- Andrew Western – Labour
Wigan Brian Crombie-Fisher – Liberal Democrats
- Jan Cunliffe – Independent
- Andy Dawber – Reform UK
- Jane Leicester – Green
- Henry Mitson – Conservative
- Lisa Nandy – Labour
- Maureen O’Bern – Independent
- The Zok – Independent
Worsley and Eccles Nas Barghouti – Workers Party
- Craig Birtwistle – Reform UK
- Jemma De Vincenzo – Liberal Democrats
- Sally Griffiths – Trade Unionist and Socialist Coalition
- David Jones – Green Party
- Bradley Mitchell – Conservative
- Danny Moloney – Independent
- Joseph Wheeler – Labour
Wythenshawe and Sale East John Barstow – Workers Party
- Sarah Beament – Conservative
- Melanie Earp – Green Party
- Julie Foursert – Reform UK
- Mike Kane – Labour
- Simon Lepori – Liberal Democrat
- Hilary Salt – Social Democratic Party.