Spelthorne Lib Dems select David Campanale as Lib Dem PPC

With a call to Remain supporters from every party to come together as a snap General Election approaches, David Campanale has been chosen by the Liberal Democrats as their Prospective Parliamentary Candidate for Spelthorne. At a well-attended hustings in Staines on Friday, he told activists his campaign would reach out beyond the party to all people of goodwill wanting to stop a No Deal Brexit.

David told members his goal is to defeat incumbent Conservative MP Kwasi Kwarteng, who he said is not just complicit in visiting over 3 years of Brexit chaos on Britain, but also for the Conservatives' mismanagement of the economy and under-investment in public services.

David Campanale said:

"It is time to draw a line under Brexit and move on. Every proposal put forward by the Tories to take Britain out of the European Union has been worse for our country, compared to the deal we have at the moment. No wonder Parliament has rejected every alternative, leading to stalemate and the risk of a hard Brexit. In 2016, Spelthorne voters didn't vote to make themselves worse off. There is no evidence they wanted No Deal.

"Instead of tearing apart our country and economy, a process of healing needs to start. This requires Parliament to put the options back to the public so they can clarify what they really want - a negotiated Deal, No Deal or Remain."David has lived in Surrey for over 30 years and is married to Andrea. With their two sons, they live in Kingston upon Thames, where David served 8 years on the Council for the Liberal Democrats. He works in international broadcasting as a producer and reporter on global news.

He said he's be campaigning against Heathrow expansion and to decarbonise the British economy. He said his focus in a Green New Deal would be on economic fairness:

"There is an imbalance in our economy. Companies are doing well but life is precarious for many people, with a cost of living crisis and stagnant wages. Instead of paying sufficient for their staff to live on, employers are paying out record share dividends, giving bonuses to their top-end staff or hoarding cash. Ending uncertainty by halting Brexit will help restore business confidence. Backed by government, a programme of long-needed investment must be secured in the workforce, their skills and on innovation. The dangers of climate heating requires a completely new industrial strategy, focussed around a Green New Deal."

David has been a director of several charities, including a major disaster relief and development agency based in Teddington, Tearfund. He has served several terms on the National Executive of the National Union of Journalists, leading the NUJ in BBC News in London and representing the union at the TUC Conference. A former director of the London Youth Games, chair of a campaign for a new community secondary school in Surrey and former primary and secondary school governor, David is also founder of East Central Europe's oldest 'Summer University' and music festival, Tusvanyos, which attracted 80,000 young people and students to its 30th anniversary this year. He is a Trustee of a Surrey-based charity working with dads and their sons, Man & Boy.

As a Liberal Democrat, David will stand up for liberal values, social justice and for transparency and integrity in politics.

For more information on David and how to get involved click here.