Ali Milani
 Ali Milani     | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | 1995 |
| Alma mater | Brunel University |
Ali Milani is a British Labour Party politician. He is standing as the party's Prospective Parliamentary Candidate (PPC) in Uxbridge and South Ruislip constituency, a seat held by Prime Minister Boris Johnson, who has the smallest constituency majority of a prime minister since 1924. In the UK/2017 General Election, Johnson's majority halved to roughly 5,000. The seat was classified by conservative think-tank Onward as "vulnerable" in April 2019.[1]
Unseating the PM
| Ali Milani, the 'antithesis' of Boris Johnson |
The candidate trying to oust the PM from the seat of Uxbridge and South Ruislip is Ali Milani, a 24-year-old Muslim immigrant, who describes himself as the 'antithesis' of Boris Johnson.
On 14 November 2019, he tweeted:
- It’s official: Boris Johnson will be standing in Uxbridge & South Ruislip.
- This is going to be an extraordinary fight. One that may define our future.
- Just imagine the world we’ll wake up to on December 13th.
- Bring it on.[2]
On 17 November 2019, thirty Jews Against Boris activists went door-knocking for Labour Party candidate Ali Milani in Boris Johnson’s seat of Uxbridge and South Ruislip.
Rivkah Brown, one of the JAB canvassers, said:
- “My personal relationship with the Labour Party has been complicated by the events of the last few years, and I understand why many in my community feel unable to vote for them.
- “However all racisms are interconnected and Jews cannot be safe while other minorities are under threat. Boris Johnson has incited a hateful and divisive politics that endangers all marginalised people. That is why being part of a group of British Jews who show solidarity with other communities is so important at this election.
- "I'm proud to campaign for the working-class Muslim immigrant, Ali Milani, who is – in an incredible act of poetic justice – going to defeat our born-to-rule Islamophobic prime minister."[3]
Background
Milani was born in Tehran, Iran, and moved to the UK at the age of five. He studied International Relations at Brunel University in Uxbridge, where he became President of the Union of Brunel Students (2015–2017). In 2017, Milani became the Vice President for Union Development at the National Union of Students (NUS), and he was re-elected in 2018.
Milani became a local councillor in Hillingdon in 2018 and was chosen in September as the PPC for Uxbridge and South Ruislip. Standing against Boris Johnson, Milani will campaign on local issues and if elected, would become the first person to unseat a UK prime minister. The constituency is "vulnerable" according to an April 2019 report by conservative think-tank Onward. Al Jazeera have reported that Milani's views "tilt heavily to the Labour Party's left" and Vice magazine have stated that Milani is affiliated with the grassroots left-wing movement Momentum.
Unreserved apology
In 2017, Milani was criticised over anti-Semitic tweets he made between 2011 and 2013, in which he claimed that Israel had "no right to exist" and used "#Jew" as a slur, amongst other things. He "apologised unreservedly" for the comments, and said in 2019 that "I have lots of Jewish friends and colleagues who've sat me down, and I've learned from them. But it's within everyone's right not to accept my apology."[4]
References
- ↑ "Meet Iranian immigrant, 24, who is set to take on Boris Johnson for Uxbridge seat"
- ↑ "It’s official: Boris Johnson will be standing in Uxbridge & South Ruislip"
- ↑ "Young left-wing Jews canvass for Labour candidate seeking to oust Boris Johnson"
- ↑ "The view from Uxbridge: young voters battle to oust Johnson from his own seat"
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