DIANE ABBOTT LAUNCHES LEADERSHIP BID AT BSIX
Diane Abbott, MP launched her bid to become Labour party leader at BSix. In the theatre, packed with staff, students, journalists and TV cameramen Diane Abbott explained why she had chosen BSix as the location for her launch. “I am proud to be launching my campaign at BSix”, Ms Abbott told her audience. “The College is in my constituency. I am proud of its achievements: it is in the top 5% of all schools and colleges for value-added at advanced level. Moreover, the young people who study here are the future leaders of this country”.
Diane Abbott then made a speech outlining her priorities - honesty about the Iraq invasion, the defence of civil liberties and the defence of the public sector against cuts being carried out, unnecessarily, by the new coalition government.
In the audience was Shami Chakrabarti, head of the civil liberties organisation, Liberty. She was there to support Ms Abbott because they have worked together closely on civil liberties issues like ID cards and the DNA database. Shami commented that the College seems to be “a buzzy and exciting place”. Inspired by this atmosphere, she gave an impromptu seminar on civil liberty to a group of A Level students.
While this was going on, Ms Abbott was being interviewed by various radio and TV stations outside of the College’s front doors, then in the BSix Art Gallery and then in the Principal’s office. She followed this with her own impromptu seminar, taking some searching questions from our A Level Government and Politics students.
After this whirlwind of speeches, seminars and interviews Diane Abbot left for home in a taxi. Before she left, she found time to write in the BSix visitor’s book. Her verdict: ‘Thank you for everything. A wonderful morning’.
Hot on the heels of the College’s appearance on The Young Apprentice, Ms Abbot’s launch event put BSix in the national newspapers. Under an article with the headline ‘Hackney MP chooses sixth form with pedigree to launch leadership drive’, The Guardian journalist Dave Hill wrote this about BSix: ‘Hackney’s BSix sixth form college stands beside a roundabout that marks the start of the number 38 London bus route, and on a site of some political pedigree. Henry VIII’s bloody fixer Thomas Cromwell used to live there in a building called Brooke House. Alan Sugar – now Lord Sugar of Clapton – grew up in the neighbourhood and began to spread his entrepreneurial wings in a car park round the back.
Yesterday it hosted the launch of Diane Abbott’s campaign to be Labour leader, before an audience of student constituents’
(Guardian, Saturday 29th May 2010)
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