As the race for selection of our next Mayor gathers pace, how delighted I was to learn of Sadiq Khan’s brave decision to throw his hat in the ring.

Mr Khan has been looking after us in the Tooting and Balham area since 2005 and I personally have never been aware of a more hardworking, committed or energised MP.

I have lived in the area for nearly 15 years and have experienced first hand how approachable and sincere he really is.

The work ethic aside, Mr Khan’s huge success and popularity can also be ascribed to his empathy for local people and their daily challenges, regardless of whether homeowner, council tenant, professional or unemployed.

After our incumbent Mayor reduced the role to circus clown and social butterfly how refreshing to have the opportunity to elect a born and bred Londoner (Tooting no less) who will put Londoners first and will actually work for us as opposed to party for us or rely on celebrity status to endorse his whims (I for one have no idea what Boris actually achieved for Londoners in the whole time he has been Mayor but that does not mean to say he neglected to raise his own profile).

I genuinely think we can rely on Mr Khan’s to prioritise the most urgent issues facing ordinary Londoners – a living wage, transport, housing and crime all spring to mind – but that is just for starters.

The mayoral race should not be about political ambition. We are not looking to elect someone for their business or personal connections; we are not looking for tokenism by choosing the hardworking child of Pakistani immigrants (or any other ethnic community or council estate kid for that sake alone) – or because Mr Khan story represents the immigrant's dream and aspiration of every hardworking London worker and or parent desperate to raise successful children in the challenging capital.

It is about voting for someone who gets us. A lot of us are from outside London – whether from the home counties, up north, Australia or Asia; but to us, London is not “full of foreigners” – it is where our friends live and it is our home.

We all love our home and want it looked after properly. Mr Khan will do that because quite simply, no one loves London and wants a better home for us than Sadiq.

He has been the best person doing the job of looking after us in Tooting and Balham for 10 years – it is now time to share him with the rest of town.

SIOBHAN GILMARTIN
Address supplied