Name: Ibrahim Dogus
Born: July 1980 in Turkey
Nationality: Kurdish
Background: Dogus was born in Turkey to a father who was a political activist. When his job placed him in danger, the family fled to the UK where Douglas received much of his formal education and upbringing.
Dogus began working as a waiter and a decade later, opened his first restaurant business. He now owns three restaurants in London and also publishes the free newspaper Lambeth Life. Dogus is the founder of the beer brand Bira. He also initiated the Centre for Turkey Studies and Centre for Kurdish Progress, which seek to build bridges across divided communities.
The organisations also hold the British Kebab Awards.
Political Career: Dougus was first formally introduced to politics in school when a teacher asked him to speak for Kurdish human rights at an NUT meeting. There he met Jeremy Corbyn and began campaigning for him.
Dougus became actively involved in politics from the early 2000s onwards. In April of 2019, he was elected as Mayor of Lambeth London Borough Council. As a member of the party, he has founded SME4Labour Group, which promotes strong links between local enterprises and MPs. He also began the Labour Campaign for Gambling Reform. He is currently running for election as a candidate for West Bromwich East.
Aims and Priorities:
- Free personal care for over 65s, and pension justice for women born in the 1950’s.
- A fully staffed and properly funded NHS with reduced waiting times.
- Securing a better deal for Brexit.
- Small class sizes in school and support for special education needs.
- Recruiting more members to the Police Force.
