Damon Young is the SDP prospective candidate for Epsom and Ewell. We spoke with Damon about his decision to stand.
“Some of the people I read, listen to and admire such as Andrew Doyle, Graham Linehan and Winston Marshall publicly expressed support for the SDP and so I was drawn to the party”
Can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.
I am a published poet and a teacher at Epsom College. Most importantly, I am a single father to my 11 year old daughter.
What made you decide to stand for the SDP.
Like so many, I have been feeling the frustration of political homelessness. In that frustration I became more and more conscious of an eco- system of similarly minded people online and have taken solace by reading and listening to UnHerd, Triggernometry, Brendan O Neill and Spiked, Bombshells, Matt Goodwin, Laura Dodsworth and many more.
Some of the people I read, listen to and admire such as Andrew Doyle, Graham Linehan and Winston Marshall publicly expressed support for the SDP and so I was drawn to the party. In doing so I was enormously impressed by the leadership of William Clouston and the Mayoral candidacy of Amy Gallagher and felt it was time for me to contribute to the SDP’s ambition of raising its electoral profile.
“The lack of affordable housing is an equally pressing matter. I am passionate about solutions being found for my daughter’s generation”
You’re the spokesman for Epsom and Ewell what’s made you decide to represent the area?
My daughter and I moved here two years ago and we very quickly came to love the area.
“As a teacher at one of the country’s top independent schools, I am horrified by Labour’s punitive policy on school fees”
What do you see as the big concerns for the constituency and what issues do you hope to champion?
Like the rest of the country, the breakdown of health and social care is a crisis that must be a top priority.
The lack of affordable housing is an equally pressing matter. I am passionate about solutions being found for my daughter’s generation.
As a teacher at one of the country’s top independent schools, I am horrified by Labour’s punitive policy on school fees. This policy will not impact the very rich (for whom school fees are pocket change) but will impact disastrously on middle- class families who make sacrifices and work extremely hard to provide the education they have chosen for their children. The knock-on effect will be an influx into already overcrowded state schools. It strikes me as a policy born of resentment and envy rather than a genuine desire to raise educational standards.
For those eager to help, how can they get involved in the campaign?
You can contact me at [email protected]
Or find me on Twitter/X @Mondo39.
