Sagal Abdi-Wali is introduced as the Labour candidate for the Holborn and St Pancras by-election by Georgia Gould and Florence Eshalomi

LABOUR’S candidate in Holborn and St Pancras says she wants to be an MP to play a role in eradicating homelessness.

Sagal Abdi-Wali said, in her first interview since being selected to stand by party members on Wednesday night, she had been inspired to get into politics after seeing people sleeping rough in the capital and said she was glad to have seen new prime minister Andy Burnham put the issue at the top of his agenda. She claimed Tony Blair and Gordon Brown’s Labour governments had “virtually eradicated” homelessness.

“I remember growing up as a kid in Camden in the 90s and it was really rampant,” she told the New Journal.

“I remember just being heartbroken as a child and it didn’t make sense to me how that could be allowed to happen – why people were being left like that, being abandoned like that. I remember coming back to Camden after going to university and it was practically eradicated because the government had it at the heart of its policies for a number of years. Obviously that did take a few years to happen, but it was eradicated.”

Ms Abdi-Wali, who has been the leader of Camden Council for three months, added: “It was then in 2010 seeing how much that [homelessness] came back while walking to work through King’s Cross. It had risen even more than it was in the 90s. Again I realised that that was a political choice that was made and so it’s really important that we now have a government that wants to make that a top priority.”

She officially launched her campaign in the London Irish Centre on Saturday morning with hundreds of supporters packing the hall in Camden Square, Camden Town. Several MPs were in attendance and she was introduced by former council leader Georgia Gould, the MP for Queen’s Park and Maida Vale, and Florence Eshalomi, the MP for Vauxhall and Camberwell Green in south London.

Ms Abdi-Wali’s campaign slogans include asking residents to vote for “hope” – and the New Journal asked why the constituency still needed hope after having a Labour MP in the area since the 1960s, a Labour council for 16 years, a Labour mayor and two years into a new government.

“It’s not so much that hope has been taken away,” she said. “I think there’s an opportunity now to really build on what Andy Burnham as prime minister wants to do in terms of the government and nationally. We have an opportunity to really work on those issues that are a priority for the people here.”

Ms Abdi-Wali has talked previously about how she was inspired by Sir Keir Starmer and that she thought he should have had more time in Downing Street, but ironically his resignation from the House of Commons has potentially laid a path for her to become an MP.

“I think we all know how much he’s [Mr Starmer] dedicated his life to public service and gave 11 years to this constituency, and so I want to have now the opportunity to be the Member of Parliament for this area, and really make sure that we have that local, loyal voice for Camden and Holborn and St Pancras. We want to make sure that we’re able to continue on some of the great work that the council and also the government have been doing in delivering for the people here: free school meals for children, breakfast clubs for so many schools across Camden, and the lifting of so many children out of poverty and improving so many people’s lives.”

The packed hall at the London Irish Centre on Saturday morning

Mr Burnham made a fleeting visit to the constituency on Thursday to film a social media video in which he said he was so glad to have Ms Abdi-Wali as the candidate for the October 8 by-election.

“It was a really nice chat and I said it was really great to have your support – and yes, there’s so much that he’s prioritising that I really value.”

Labour have flooded the streets with activists from Camden and beyond. There were cheers at the campaign launch for campaigners who had come from different corners of London, but also as far away as Scotland. The party has never felt the pressure to mount an operation of this size in Holborn and St Pancras after years of securing large majorities with the long-serving Frank Dobson and Mr Starmer, the latter reaching a lead of 30,000 at the 2019 general election. The party takes a lead of more than 11,000 into the contest – and second last time was Andrew Feinstein, the independent candidate not standing this time but who has welcomed the candidacy of Green Party leader Zack Polanski, widely considered the biggest threat to her securing a place in parliament.

Asked about why Labour needed a full-throttle defence this time, Ms Abdi-Wali said: “I think it’s more that it’s a by-election. I obviously don’t remember in my lifetime a by-election happening in the Holborn and St Pancras constituency, so I think a by-election always motivates and mobilises people all over the country.

“I think it also speaks to the fact that we here in Holborn and St Pancras have gone all over the country. I’ve campaigned in Darlington and Dorset. I’ve campaigned in Bassetlaw and Barnet, gone all over the country helping Labour candidates – and Labour victories. I guess some solidarity is being shown back to us now and I’m really excited by that. Seeing the crowd [at the launch] and how diverse it was, from young to old, people from all different backgrounds and cultures – it just shows the excitement that we have in this campaign.”

A full list of candidates for the by-election will be published by the New Journal when it is available.