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Climate activist Tamsin Omond takes on 'London's laziest MP' Glenda Jackson
Peter Dominiczak25 Feb 2010
Climate campaigner Tamsin Omond today announced that she will stand as a parliamentary candidate in north London.
Ms Omond, the Cambridge-educated granddaughter of a baronet, will stand as an independent candidate in the newly created seat of Hampstead and Kilburn against former transport minister and actress Glenda Jackson, who she called the “laziest MP in London”.
The 25-year-old, the founder of green campaign group Climate Rush, was arrested in 2008 for scaling the roof of Parliament in protest at the Heathrow expansion.
She has now formed a political party, called The Commons, and is believed to have substantial financial backing from green campaigners.
Ms Omond, who lives in Kilburn, intends to mount a Barack Obama-style campaign using social media to galvanise young voters in the area.
Last week cryptic posters started appearing in the area, of a silhouette alongside the other candidates including Ms Jackson, Liberal Democrat Ed Fordham and Tory Chris Philp, proclaiming that the election race would include “not just the usual suspects”.
Ms Omond said: “Hampstead and Kilburn is a new constituency and we want to show people what a new MP can do. We've had enough of distant politicians droning on about broken Britain but doing very little.
“Labour and the Conservatives represent a type of politics that people are bored with. We want to remind people that politics is about choice. The other candidates are going after the dwindling older population in the area who still vote.
"We are going after the tens of thousands of young voters. If we get their vote, we will win by a landslide.”
Ms Omond said that if she wins the election, she will put a third of her salary into local projects selected by her constituents. She also vowed to do one day of community service each week and said she would ensure everyone in the constituency who is eligible to vote is registered by the end of her first period in office.
Ms Jackson, Labour MP for Hampstead and Highgate, last year repaid more than £8,000 in expenses she had wrongly claimed. The 73-year-old double Oscar-winner has previously been shown to be one of the MPs who offers least value for money.
In 2007/2008, she claimed £136,793 in allowances despite turning up for only 27 per cent of votes and speaking in just two debates.
Ms Omond said: “The expenses scandal definitely influenced my decision to stand. People in the constituency I've spoken to are incredulous that Glenda Jackson would even bother standing in the election. She is the laziest MP in London.”
The new Hampstead and Kilburn seat covers most of the old Hampstead and Highgate constituency and a third of the old Brent East seats.
As well as scaling Parliament, Climate Rush protesters have brought traffic to a standstill on Westminster Bridge and glued themselves to a statue inside the Commons.
Ms Omond said the group would be “heavily involved” in her campaign: “We're going to have people dressed as suffragettes going door-to-door offering to draught-proof houses and sort out insulation.
“This is not going to be a normal campaign. We really feel we have a fantastic chance of winning this election.”
Tamsin Omond, 25
Occupation Leader of The Commons political party and founder of the Climate Rush campaign group
Most famous for Being arrested in 2008 after scaling roof of Parliament with four other climate campaigners .
Most famous role Founding green campaign group Climate Rush. The group have been responsible for numerous stunts including gluing themselves to statues in Houses of Parliament.
Politics Has become known as the glamorous face of the green movement. A committed liberal who has also spoken out about homophobia and lesbian rights.
Glenda Jackson, 73
Occupation Labour MP for Hampstead and Highgate
Most famous forBeing Parliament's only double Oscar winner.
Most famous role Ms Jackson found fame in 1969 after the release of the controversial Women in Love, for which she won her first Academy Award for Best Actress.
Politics She retired from acting in order to enter the House of Commons in the 1992 general election as the Labour MP for Hampstead and Highgate. After the 1997 general election, she was appointed a junior minister, with responsibility for London Transport. A high-profile regular critic of Tony Blair over his plans to introduce top-up fees.
Reader views (19)
I would like to see Tamsin Omond in a debate about climate change, perhaps up against someone like Christopher Monckton.
I am fed up with the reasons for climate change being misrepresented by so-called climate change activists, for what purpose? A good one of them would be how to get elected to parliament by using inaccurate data to make false claims about man-made increases in CO2!
These people would have billions of pounds spent in this country and trillions spent world wide to reduce CO2 emissions.For what cause?
At best around 17% of the increase of 100ppm in CO2 levels since the Industrial Revolution:- 285ppm to 385ppm of this trace gas could be put down to mans' influence.
What about deforestation? These activists have not even been able to halt this despite all their efforts, yet this would make a greater contribution to nature than all the hot air expelled in argument about so-called mans influence on climate change.
Tamsin, get a life.
- Paul Latham, Ilkley, United Kingdom, 02/04/2010 17:28
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I say good luck to her! At 22 I was involved in local politics (trying to become a councilor) representing the greens and I was up against some of the laziest conservatives, lib dems & labour candidates that got in based purely on the party they represented, NOT their actual personal contributions to the council or local area. I think this is the case for a lot of major party candidates (labour, lib dem & tory) and to get up and fight against them is spot on. Our country is run by a bunch of middle aged old crones who have no passion or enthusiasm for fresh new ideas and fast moving policies. Ignore all of these negative comments, they're stubborn minded followers too stuck in their ways to see an opportunity for change when it hits them in the face. As for the comments about Tamsin's background, thanks to the introduction of the terrorism act, it is impossible to make a stand without getting arrested these days. I could understand the concern if she had been arrested for GBH, theft or some other severely antisocial act - but being arrested for scaling the roof of Parliament? Sounds like another reason to vote for her. I only wish I had someone like Tamsin to vote for in my area.
- Jack, Poole, 09/03/2010 14:44
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Tamsin is tenaciuos person and reacts well under pressure I would not underestimate her resolve and commitment to do positive things in this under represented area.
Her Back ground is all just historicall data. Surely, it is only the future that counts; ecomically, environmentally and socially.
let us get it into perspective.
- Brad, Wales and London, 28/02/2010 16:33
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christ sake happy people. give the girl a chance. are you happy with your MP"s? do you think things are working fine out there? See what happens, at least encourage a fresh perspective, judge her on what she achieves. I say well played for having a go
- Dan, london, 26/02/2010 17:55
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It's easy to criticise and get personal. We have a situation where there's a huge lack of trust in politicians, lots of people don't vote, and neither labour or the conservatives seem to have any answers and don't care a hoot about local democracy. Furthermore, we urgently need to move to a low carbon economy for the sake of our children and grandchildren. I don't see labour or the conservatives doing much on this front, plus I wouldn't trust them as far as I could throw them.
I think tamsin should be applauded for having the balls to stand up, be counted and try to make a change for the better.
Begs the question what are the critics amongst you doing yourself?
- Rumbels, Attleborough, 26/02/2010 17:22
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Gosh, people are really nasty! Calling a fresh candidate "spotty", "daddy's girl", "rich girl", "never worked a day in her life" etc. really strikes me as low, cheap and nasty. Jackson deserves the title of lazy because she appears just 40 times in Parliamentary records, when the average is 1000. But what really bothers me is using words like "terrorist", Mr. S Port (first name presumably "Bad") - perhaps you meant to type Terra-ist - that means a lover of the Earth, which I am and which Tamsin is too. Yes, I know her personally, and anyone else who does will no doubt have an almighty chuckle at "Kerry, Purley"'s assertion that she will pack in her political whims to marry "Tarquin or Jasper". Hardy har har! You have no idea how funny that is! She is not rich although she IS educated and anyone who's bothered by that clearly isn't. I thought we'd got past the point where you have to speak like a yob in order to have street cred. Glenda Jackson is a great actor but I think Tamsin will be a great MP. BTW - it's not important, but she has flawless skin.
- Diana Trimble, London UK, 26/02/2010 14:09
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I hope to see her walking the streets of Hampstead in her quest to be the first eco terrorist in Parliament.
- Mr S.Port, London, 25/02/2010 23:35
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Yet another Climate Change headcase!
- Mark A, Warrington, 25/02/2010 20:58
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Occupation: none
Financial backing: substantial
Says it all really.
It's also interesting that on the first day of her campaign she chooses to make personal attacks against her opponent. Charming.
- Jez, Camden, 25/02/2010 18:34
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where are her spots?
- Tony, london, 25/02/2010 18:21
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Tamsin Lahdidah looks a bit like the Joker, but without the green hair.
- Nobby Clark, Perth, the Scottish one, 25/02/2010 16:42
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I see a number of comments made by people who clearly know the candidate. Idiots.
- Paul, London, United Kingdom, 25/02/2010 14:42
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I live in Westhampstead and Glenda Jackson is my MP. Far from being lazy she is a hard working MP who has help numerous people in this area and Kilburn and has being doing for so many years without having to use gimmicks to get herself in the limelight. The last thing we want around here right now is some spotty little daddys girl trying to make a name for herself. If these dressed up suffragettes offer to draught proof and insulate my house I will take them at their word and insist they start immediately. I dare say that would be the last I see of them. Hanging from church steeples and dressing up as suffragettes isn't going to solve the housing shortage or many of the other serious issues that needs to be sorted out aroun here.
- Jimmy, London England, 25/02/2010 14:38
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I think daddy's little rich girl ms Omond should be applauded,its takes an exceptional brass neck for someone who has never worked a day in her life calling glenda Jackson lazy...and failing to see the irony of her statement!.
- Jacob, Hot Air Britain, 25/02/2010 14:31
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For want of anyone else pulling their finger out and shifting the entrenched political dinosaurs we have now, I wish her well. Nobody else is shaking our political system out of its stupor so if she wants to have a go, good luck to her.
It's not as easy as it looks or sounds so only time will tell whether she captures the imgination of the voters.
- Janet, London, UK, 25/02/2010 13:43
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Tamsin Omond is just a tedious attention-seeker. If you want a serious challenge, vote Green.
- Jo, London, 25/02/2010 13:42
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Althoughj the population are crying out for change in the composition of the House of Commons, I'm not sure they really want a law breaking, never gainfully employed, self promoting spotty teenager as a replacement. Sitting on the house is no qualification for being in it.
- Jon, london, 25/02/2010 12:27
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A stupid little rich girl who will give it all up when Tarquin or Jasper marries her and takes her off to the family seat.
- Kerry, Purley, 25/02/2010 12:27
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OH NO !!!!!YET ANOTHER CHAMPAGNE SOCIALIST DOES HAMPSTEAD NEED ANY MORE?
Do any of us?
go home to Daddy darling and stamp your foot at the servants.
- Shed, marlboro wilts, 25/02/2010 12:26
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