Sol Campbell has thrown his hat into the ring to represent the Conservative Party in the 2016 London mayoral election. The official announcement comes after the former England footballer voiced his interest in the position earlier this year when he was rumoured to be lined up as a parliamentary candidate for Kensington.
This means the Tories now have three candidates who have announced they will stand to be the party’s candidate for Mayor of London, with Ivan Massow Stephen Greenhalgh already having declared. While both Massow and Campbell lack a background in politics, it is expected that more candidates will announce in the coming weeks ahead of the Conservative Way Forward hustings taking place next month.
Speaking to SunNation about his bid, Campbell, who says ‘he is in it to win it’, addressed his own lack of experience:
‘I’m going in with my eyes wide open. I know I’m not going to be a frontrunner. But I look at people who have been in politics for five, 10, 15 years, and muck up, you see them muck up and think “You guys are supposed to be pro!” People that have gone to Oxbridge, had thousands spent on their education, and I mean they are royally mucking up.’
Campbell is hoping his own working-class background will mean he stands out from the other candidates in the race:
‘I bring something new to the table. This is a whole new road for me, something I can get my teeth into but I just felt it was something I had to do. I come from a working class background, I wasn’t easy for me at all, but I worked hard. And now it’s about giving something back.’
Given that the last time Mr S caught up with Campbell he said MPs needed to be paid more, it’s probably for the best that the former footballer has decided to run for Mayor rather than as an MP this time around. Boris Johnson’s salary stands at £143,911, which is slightly more than the Prime Minister’s current wage of £142,500.
Comments