Meet Al
Al's Statement of Intent
We are living in an era of unprecedented global and national challenges. The climate is in crisis. There’s growing geopolitical instability. The cost-of-living crisis is spiralling, pushing families into poverty. Our infrastructure is crumbling and our economy flatlining.
Like never before, we need serious people to represent and lead us. And yet our government have forgotten how to govern, preferring instead to chase votes by sewing social division, while our most senior politicians fail to uphold the standards we expect in public life.
We need A Fresh Start
I am an Associate Professor of Geopolitics at Royal Holloway University of London and I spend my professional life engaging with parts of the world affected by international border and territorial disputes, diplomatic crises, and geopolitical tensions. I have worked in Cyprus, India, the United States, the British Overseas Territories of Gibraltar and the Falkland Islands, and was working in Sudan until just before the most recent outbreak of civil conflict.
When not researching or teaching, I have provided advice on diplomatic and security issues to the UK and international governments. In 2013, I was an official observer of the Falkland Islands Referendum and, in 2022, co-organised the Falklands 40 Schools Competition – a key component in the official commemoration of the 1982 conflict.
I have authored dozens of research papers on international diplomacy and conflict, co-authored the seminal Handbook on Displacement (2020), and was the author of Radio: making waves in sound (2019). With the former Crimewatch presenter, Jacqui Hames, I am the co-host of “Surrey Heath Cast: notes from the Blue Wall”.
For me, standing for parliament is about serving in the interests of my community, my constituency, and my country. That means working together, across the political spectrum, to share the very best ideas; to think and plan for the long term; and to work justly in the pursuit of a liberal, open, tolerant, accountable, internationalist and successful United Kingdom.
That starts here and now in Surrey Heath – the place and community where my family and I live.
Al in Surrey Heath
Al is a family man, originally from Scotland, who now lives with his wife and two sons in the Heatherside district of Surrey Heath.
He is an Associate Professor at Royal Holloway, University of London with research interests in Geopolitics, Development, Security and Justice Issues. He also has a strong interest in the effects of climate change and its impacts in both the national and international arenas.
Click on the image below to watch a short video clip and hear Al talk about why he is standing to become the MP for Surrey Heath.