Liberal Democrat candidate for Islington North

Age: 38

Address: Finsbury Park

Marital status: Married

Children: No

Interests outside politics: Football, Game of Thrones, Sunday roasts with friends, London history and old photos, trips to the cinema and coffee.

Current job: Barrister.

Any directorships/ other financial interests: No

What jobs/ interests will you continue with if elected: None

What is your local connection to the area: In live in the constituency with my wife and two cats, I’m a governor at Grafton School and an Arsenal season ticket holder. The places I love are here – the ice cream van on Highbury Fields in the summer, Rowans bowling alley, Park Theatre, Pappagone’s on Stroud Green Road and the Emirates (on the good days).

If I am elected, the first thing I will do is: Invite every local school to visit me in the House of Commons to learn about our Parliament and its history. UK politics today is far from perfect, but we should be proud of our democratic traditions and make sure our children know about them – four out of 10 people in the world today still live under authoritarian rule.

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How would/did you vote on the following issues:

Assisted suicide? I would have supported the Assisted Dying Bill, which includes strict safeguards and draws on a Canadian law that has been in force for 17 years without any evidence of abuse. Many of us have spent time with people who have suffered terribly at the end of their lives and have been desperate for it all to end. They deserve to be treated with compassion and should be allowed to determine how and when they go out of the world.

Gay marriage? This is one of the great achievements of the Lib Dems in government. It is a truly liberal measure - promoting equality and challenging intolerance - which has brought much joy to many people.

UK Military action against Syrian President Bashair al-Assad’s government? In general, I think the UK has been too quick to intervene in other countries militarily: governments underestimate how incredibly harmful it can be. On the other hand, the position in Syria is truly terrible: over last four years more than 200,000 Syrians have lost their lives and 11 million have been displaced from their homes. On balance, I would have supported limited intervention to remove Assad’s ability to use chemical weapons against his own people, which he has undoubtedly done. A positive point is that at least Parliament got to decide whether we took military action, unlike when we went to war in Iraq under Tony Blair.

Smoking in cars? Inhaling cigarette smoke is very harmful. If adults want to subject themselves to the associated risks, that is their prerogative. But they shouldn’t be able to inflict those risks on children. I would therefore have voted to ban smoking in cars when children are present.