Josh Babarinde MP

I mean, it's a crazy place. It's great to come here, having done some stuff before, you know, as you said, spent my career supporting kids out of crime, out of gangs and into employment. and in a slightly novel way through building a phone repair company. And it basically came from doing some work in the East End of London.

I mean, it's a crazy place. It's great to come here, having done some stuff before, you know, as you said, spent my career supporting kids out of crime, out of gangs and into employment. and in a slightly novel way through building a phone repair company. And it basically came from doing some work in the East End of London.

I'm from Eastbourne originally, born and bred, so quite different to the East End. But I found myself there working with young people who had had upbringings in some ways that were not dissimilar to mine. I had some quite tricky patches in my childhood, but I had an amazing town, amazing family, amazing school, community, et cetera, that lifted me. And I ended up working with a lot of folks

I'm from Eastbourne originally, born and bred, so quite different to the East End. But I found myself there working with young people who had had upbringings in some ways that were not dissimilar to mine. I had some quite tricky patches in my childhood, but I had an amazing town, amazing family, amazing school, community, et cetera, that lifted me. And I ended up working with a lot of folks

who'd had difficult home lives as well in the East End, who didn't have all that stuff around them in the same kind of way, or they didn't experience it in the same way. And so I wanted to do what I could to support them. And so I ended up training and employing them to repair broken smartphone screens, to make money, to feel valued, to belong.

who'd had difficult home lives as well in the East End, who didn't have all that stuff around them in the same kind of way, or they didn't experience it in the same way. And so I wanted to do what I could to support them. And so I ended up training and employing them to repair broken smartphone screens, to make money, to feel valued, to belong.

And, you know, I was taking guys who had convictions for things like wielding axes into the US embassy under Trump to repair his diplomat's phones.

And, you know, I was taking guys who had convictions for things like wielding axes into the US embassy under Trump to repair his diplomat's phones.

It was an awesome time. And yeah, great to bring that insight from the front line to the House of Commons.

It was an awesome time. And yeah, great to bring that insight from the front line to the House of Commons.

Well, I'll tell you the silly story and then I'll tell you the serious story. The silly story is that I was at a uni open day when I was about 16 and it happened to be freshers week. They had all the freshers stalls out there and I knew I was interested in politics, but I wasn't massively into it. But I saw a Lib Dem stall and they had these really cool beer mats and they said...

Well, I'll tell you the silly story and then I'll tell you the serious story. The silly story is that I was at a uni open day when I was about 16 and it happened to be freshers week. They had all the freshers stalls out there and I knew I was interested in politics, but I wasn't massively into it. But I saw a Lib Dem stall and they had these really cool beer mats and they said...

can I have a beer, Matt? And they were like, no, not unless you join. So my mate Abby paid for me to join. I still haven't paid her back. And I ended up member of the party. And then this was back in 2009. So I was getting lots of emails through saying, you know, come to this event, come to that event. I ended up at an event where Nick Clegg was speaking.

can I have a beer, Matt? And they were like, no, not unless you join. So my mate Abby paid for me to join. I still haven't paid her back. And I ended up member of the party. And then this was back in 2009. So I was getting lots of emails through saying, you know, come to this event, come to that event. I ended up at an event where Nick Clegg was speaking.

There was a guy behind me asking loads of xenophobic questions. And I thought, I'm not having that. So I had it out with him at the end. And our debate was broken up by the then Lib Dem candidate who said, don't get mad, get even, come and help me win. And the rest is history.

There was a guy behind me asking loads of xenophobic questions. And I thought, I'm not having that. So I had it out with him at the end. And our debate was broken up by the then Lib Dem candidate who said, don't get mad, get even, come and help me win. And the rest is history.

But the reason I stayed is because, I guess, jumping back to childhood in a bunch of ways, you know, for me, it really angers me, to be honest, but also makes me sad that so many people's respective qualities of life are defined by not much more than brute luck and bad luck in a had some bad luck in my life, but the young people I've spent my career working with had even more.

But the reason I stayed is because, I guess, jumping back to childhood in a bunch of ways, you know, for me, it really angers me, to be honest, but also makes me sad that so many people's respective qualities of life are defined by not much more than brute luck and bad luck in a had some bad luck in my life, but the young people I've spent my career working with had even more.

And so I wanted to find a way to reduce or if I'm being really utopian about it, eliminate the role that luck plays in shaping people's courses and qualities of life. So they're not you know, punished by the market. They're not forced into particular places by the state, but they and their communities get to decide where they go, what fulfills them and what the future looks like.

And so I wanted to find a way to reduce or if I'm being really utopian about it, eliminate the role that luck plays in shaping people's courses and qualities of life. So they're not you know, punished by the market. They're not forced into particular places by the state, but they and their communities get to decide where they go, what fulfills them and what the future looks like.