Shaun Bailey
Encyclopedia
Shaun Bailey is a British Afro-Caribbean
youth worker. He stood for the London constituency of Hammersmith
as a Conservative
at the 2010 general election.
, London in 1971, where he and his younger brother were raised by his mother and extended family in the absence of his father, a lorry driver. The family are of Jamaica
n origin. From about 13 years of age he started to get to know his father, along with a second family his father had started, and became close to his stepsisters and stepbrothers.
Bailey went to Henry Compton Secondary School in Fulham and left with five GCSEs. When Bailey was 12 years old, his mother sent him to join the Army Cadet Force
in White City. When Bailey was about 19, he became a Sergeant-Instructor and stayed in the Cadets for another 10 years in Askew. His time spent in the Cadets gave him an understanding of 'Britishness', and he felt much less separated from the world around him. At about the age of 12 or 13, he started going to the Jubilee Sports Centre to take up gymnastics, which occupied much of his remaining spare time. After this, he became a devoted member of Childs Hill Gymnastics Display team, a well known and respected gymnastics club in London who travel all around the world. They went on to win many gymnastic competitions, both national and international. Shaun still visits the gymnasts when he can to offer his support. After leaving secondary school, Bailey attended Paddington College, where he got two A-levels and a BTEC.
. Previously, he worked as a security guard at Wembley Stadium and the Trocadero
to put himself through university. After witnessing the route to crime taken by many of his peers, Bailey became a drug-worker and co-founded "My Generation", a charity devoted to addressing the social problems that affect young people and their families, such as anti-social behaviour, drug abuse, crime, pregnancy, educational underachievement, and unemployment. Bailey was the Chairman of the Trustees at the Pepper Pot Day Centre(2007–2009), an organisation in West London that looks provides for the African and Caribbean elders and adults with special needs.
Bailey is a Research Fellow at the Centre for Policy Studies
, writing for the Centre and for various newspapers, including the Evening Standard
, the Times
, and the Independent
. His main area of specialisation is youth crime, welfare and charity and he is a member of the Police Community Consultation Group and has worked closely with the Independent Police Complaints Authority. He has been called a possible future Home Secretary
and Mayor of London
. However his failure to win in the 2010 General Election seemed to end those hopes.
Bailey was interviewed on the BBC
's Newsnight
programme in March 2011, where he was introduced as 'Ambassador for the Big Society
'.
to be the Conservative
candidate for the new parliamentary seat of Hammersmith
, a key marginal seat in West London. His campaign has focused on issues surrounding families and social responsibility.
Although he lives outside the constituency, he argued he had strong links to the area. "I grew up in and around Hammersmith & Fulham borough from the age of four. I went to Henry Compton School. My mum still lives in Shepherds Bush. The charity I co-founded regularly works with many young people and their families from the Shepherds Bush and White City area. I have been and still am involved in many organisations and events all over the borough. If all of these examples don't qualify as links to Hammersmith then I'm not sure what would. All of these things are well documented, quoted in the press and on my own website.".
Bailey has expressed concerns about liberalism
, saying "The more liberal we have been, the more our communities have suffered". and "The key wickedness that the Government has perpetrated is the idea that government can pay for everything. If you continually give people things and ask for nothing back you rob them of their will. People have to be involved in their own redemption. There are people sitting at home now who don't work because it's not worth their while to do it under the benefits system. That's wrong."
Bailey has been criticised for his self-hating black politics. In his Centre for Policy Studies paper, No Man's Land, Bailey says about his mother: "She also made sure that I never went to a school in our locality – she didn’t want me to be too friendly with the boys here. A deliberate ploy not to leave me among too many black children. She had seen how black people interact with black people – what they say to other black people – that means you can’t go forward. That you get trapped in your own poor community." In the 2010 Election, he was criticised for enabling right-wing hatred against black people.
In the 2010 General Election, Bailey lost to the Labour Party's candidate, Andy Slaughter, the Shadow Justice Minister on a swing of 0.5% to the Labour Party, one of only two Conservative target seats in England in which there was a swing to Labour.
noted that £15,952 of payments were made "without any supporting records". Bailey made a statement to the paper saying "what you are dealing with is a kid from the estate who had a good idea to do this and never had a wider view of accountants and lawyers. We have raised this money, spent it on the kids. We just didn’t know." Critics have noted that the founding trustees of My Generation were Charles Niren, a chartered accountant, Karin Norman, a former investment banker and Laetitia Gunn, a former Conservative A-List parliamentary candidate and barrister. The Charity Commission stated in April that they were looking into the discrepancies and had yet to decide whether to place My Generation "under investigation" under the powers granted to them by Section 8 of the Charities Act 1993 to investigate malfeasance.
British African-Caribbean community
The British African Caribbean communities are residents of the United Kingdom who are of West Indian background and whose ancestors were primarily indigenous to Africa...
youth worker. He stood for the London constituency of Hammersmith
Hammersmith (UK Parliament constituency)
Hammersmith is a borough constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It elects one Member of Parliament by the first past the post system of election...
as a Conservative
Conservative Party (UK)
The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House...
at the 2010 general election.
Early life
Bailey was born in North KensingtonNorth Kensington
North Kensington is an area of west London lying north of Notting Hill Gate and south of Harrow Road.North Kensington is the key neighbourhood of Notting Hill...
, London in 1971, where he and his younger brother were raised by his mother and extended family in the absence of his father, a lorry driver. The family are of Jamaica
Jamaica
Jamaica is an island nation of the Greater Antilles, in length, up to in width and 10,990 square kilometres in area. It is situated in the Caribbean Sea, about south of Cuba, and west of Hispaniola, the island harbouring the nation-states Haiti and the Dominican Republic...
n origin. From about 13 years of age he started to get to know his father, along with a second family his father had started, and became close to his stepsisters and stepbrothers.
Bailey went to Henry Compton Secondary School in Fulham and left with five GCSEs. When Bailey was 12 years old, his mother sent him to join the Army Cadet Force
Army Cadet Force
The Army Cadet Force is a British youth organisation that offers progressive training in a multitude of the subjects from military training to adventurous training and first aid, at the same time as promoting achievement, discipline, and good citizenship, to boys and girls aged 12 to 18 and 9...
in White City. When Bailey was about 19, he became a Sergeant-Instructor and stayed in the Cadets for another 10 years in Askew. His time spent in the Cadets gave him an understanding of 'Britishness', and he felt much less separated from the world around him. At about the age of 12 or 13, he started going to the Jubilee Sports Centre to take up gymnastics, which occupied much of his remaining spare time. After this, he became a devoted member of Childs Hill Gymnastics Display team, a well known and respected gymnastics club in London who travel all around the world. They went on to win many gymnastic competitions, both national and international. Shaun still visits the gymnasts when he can to offer his support. After leaving secondary school, Bailey attended Paddington College, where he got two A-levels and a BTEC.
Career
Bailey graduated with a 2.2 in computer-aided engineering from London South Bank UniversityLondon South Bank University
London South Bank University is a university in south London. With over 25,000 students and 1,700 staff, it is based in the London Borough of Southwark, near the South Bank of the River Thames, from which it takes its name...
. Previously, he worked as a security guard at Wembley Stadium and the Trocadero
Trocadero (London)
The London Trocadero is an entertainment complex in Shaftesbury Avenue, London originally built as a restaurant but most recently used as an exhibition and entertainment space....
to put himself through university. After witnessing the route to crime taken by many of his peers, Bailey became a drug-worker and co-founded "My Generation", a charity devoted to addressing the social problems that affect young people and their families, such as anti-social behaviour, drug abuse, crime, pregnancy, educational underachievement, and unemployment. Bailey was the Chairman of the Trustees at the Pepper Pot Day Centre(2007–2009), an organisation in West London that looks provides for the African and Caribbean elders and adults with special needs.
Bailey is a Research Fellow at the Centre for Policy Studies
Centre for Policy Studies
The Centre for Policy Studies is a British right wing policy think tank whose goal is to promote coherent and practical public policy, to roll back the state, reform public services, support communities, and challenge threats to Britain’s independence...
, writing for the Centre and for various newspapers, including the Evening Standard
Evening Standard
The Evening Standard, now styled the London Evening Standard, is a free local daily newspaper, published Monday–Friday in tabloid format in London. It is the dominant regional evening paper for London and the surrounding area, with coverage of national and international news and City of London...
, the Times
The Times
The Times is a British daily national newspaper, first published in London in 1785 under the title The Daily Universal Register . The Times and its sister paper The Sunday Times are published by Times Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary since 1981 of News International...
, and the Independent
The Independent
The Independent is a British national morning newspaper published in London by Independent Print Limited, owned by Alexander Lebedev since 2010. It is nicknamed the Indy, while the Sunday edition, The Independent on Sunday, is the Sindy. Launched in 1986, it is one of the youngest UK national daily...
. His main area of specialisation is youth crime, welfare and charity and he is a member of the Police Community Consultation Group and has worked closely with the Independent Police Complaints Authority. He has been called a possible future Home Secretary
Home Secretary
The Secretary of State for the Home Department, commonly known as the Home Secretary, is the minister in charge of the Home Office of the United Kingdom, and one of the country's four Great Offices of State...
and Mayor of London
Mayor of London
The Mayor of London is an elected politician who, along with the London Assembly of 25 members, is accountable for the strategic government of Greater London. Conservative Boris Johnson has held the position since 4 May 2008...
. However his failure to win in the 2010 General Election seemed to end those hopes.
Bailey was interviewed on the BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
's Newsnight
Newsnight
Newsnight is a BBC Television current affairs programme noted for its in-depth analysis and often robust cross-examination of senior politicians. Jeremy Paxman has been its main presenter for over two decades....
programme in March 2011, where he was introduced as 'Ambassador for the Big Society
Big Society
The Big Society was the flagship policy idea of the 2010 UK Conservative Party general election manifesto. It now forms part of the legislative programme of the Conservative – Liberal Democrat Coalition Agreement. The aim is "to create a climate that empowers local people and communities, building...
'.
Politics
On 29 March 2007 he was selected at an open primaryOpen primary
An open primary is a primary election that does not require voters to be affiliated with a political party in order to vote for partisan candidates. In a traditional open primary, voters may select one party's ballot and vote for that party's nomination. As in a closed primary, the highest voted...
to be the Conservative
Conservative Party (UK)
The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House...
candidate for the new parliamentary seat of Hammersmith
Hammersmith
Hammersmith is an urban centre in the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham in west London, England, in the United Kingdom, approximately five miles west of Charing Cross on the north bank of the River Thames...
, a key marginal seat in West London. His campaign has focused on issues surrounding families and social responsibility.
Although he lives outside the constituency, he argued he had strong links to the area. "I grew up in and around Hammersmith & Fulham borough from the age of four. I went to Henry Compton School. My mum still lives in Shepherds Bush. The charity I co-founded regularly works with many young people and their families from the Shepherds Bush and White City area. I have been and still am involved in many organisations and events all over the borough. If all of these examples don't qualify as links to Hammersmith then I'm not sure what would. All of these things are well documented, quoted in the press and on my own website.".
Bailey has expressed concerns about liberalism
Liberalism
Liberalism is the belief in the importance of liberty and equal rights. Liberals espouse a wide array of views depending on their understanding of these principles, but generally, liberals support ideas such as constitutionalism, liberal democracy, free and fair elections, human rights,...
, saying "The more liberal we have been, the more our communities have suffered". and "The key wickedness that the Government has perpetrated is the idea that government can pay for everything. If you continually give people things and ask for nothing back you rob them of their will. People have to be involved in their own redemption. There are people sitting at home now who don't work because it's not worth their while to do it under the benefits system. That's wrong."
Bailey has been criticised for his self-hating black politics. In his Centre for Policy Studies paper, No Man's Land, Bailey says about his mother: "She also made sure that I never went to a school in our locality – she didn’t want me to be too friendly with the boys here. A deliberate ploy not to leave me among too many black children. She had seen how black people interact with black people – what they say to other black people – that means you can’t go forward. That you get trapped in your own poor community." In the 2010 Election, he was criticised for enabling right-wing hatred against black people.
In the 2010 General Election, Bailey lost to the Labour Party's candidate, Andy Slaughter, the Shadow Justice Minister on a swing of 0.5% to the Labour Party, one of only two Conservative target seats in England in which there was a swing to Labour.
Controversies
On 17 April 2010, an article in The Times uncovered a £16,000 discrepancy in the accounts of My Generation, the charity that Bailey runs. The company's own 2008-9 accounts filed with the Charity CommissionCharity Commission
The Charity Commission for England and Wales is the non-ministerial government department that regulates registered charities in England and Wales....
noted that £15,952 of payments were made "without any supporting records". Bailey made a statement to the paper saying "what you are dealing with is a kid from the estate who had a good idea to do this and never had a wider view of accountants and lawyers. We have raised this money, spent it on the kids. We just didn’t know." Critics have noted that the founding trustees of My Generation were Charles Niren, a chartered accountant, Karin Norman, a former investment banker and Laetitia Gunn, a former Conservative A-List parliamentary candidate and barrister. The Charity Commission stated in April that they were looking into the discrepancies and had yet to decide whether to place My Generation "under investigation" under the powers granted to them by Section 8 of the Charities Act 1993 to investigate malfeasance.
Publications
- Centre for Policy StudiesCentre for Policy StudiesThe Centre for Policy Studies is a British right wing policy think tank whose goal is to promote coherent and practical public policy, to roll back the state, reform public services, support communities, and challenge threats to Britain’s independence...
No Man's Land