The Conservative candidate for the Bedford constituency said she is someone who has seen both sides of life and “knows what hardship is like”.
Pinder Chauhan said after her parents lost their business during the recession. “The whole family lived in a homeless shelter for two years,” she said.
“Mum and Dad worked really hard and eventually we got ourselves out of that situation and lived in a council house for a little while. But I’ve seen two sides of life, I saw a life where we had everything and a life where we had nothing.
“When I am speaking to people on the doorstep they think ‘ah, Conservatives, they don’t know hardship is, they don’t know what people experience in life. They don’t know any of this stuff’.
“But I want to put it out there that I actually understand. We’ve had the cost of living, we’ve had a lot that’s happened over the last four years.
“I’ve experienced that, I’ve been through that,” she said. “I feel that this country gives us so much, even when you’ve lost everything you’re able to build yourself back up and have those opportunities.
“So I want to make sure that whoever wants those opportunities that they’re there for them And that’s what I would always fight for,” she said.
Pinder was selected as the Conservative candidate in January 2023, and she said since then the constituency has been her priority.
Read: Conservative PPC Pinder Chauhan speaks exclusively about Bedford, politics and homelessness
“I’ve lived it, breathed it, and as a candidate, it’s not something you get paid for,” she said. “You’re still doing your day job, still taking care of your kids.
“But I’ve put aside any opportunities that I’ve been offered to dedicate myself to here. I’m really proud to be a candidate here, it’s not been easy, it’s been very, very, hard.
“It’s probably not the easiest seat, there’s so many very different views and ideas here, it’s such a diverse place to be in.
“You find that what’s important in one area is not important in another area, so you’re balancing different priorities and everything else. But a lot of [the constituents] do feel that Bedford is being left behind if you compare it to the areas that are developing around us.
“I think actually there have been missed opportunities for Bedford, I feel that there’s a lot more that we can do here. There’s so much potential and opportunity here, and I’m really excited actually to see what we can do,” she said.
Securing opportunities for the area is one of Pinder’s six priorities in her “plan for Bedford and Kempston”.
The others are; revitalising the town centres and supporting local businesses, tackling crime (county lines, anti-social behaviour and knife crime), rebuilding North Wing, improving the transport infrastructure, and prioritising the “best start to life” for young people.
The general election will be held on 4 July, and the final list of candidates for Bedford is due to be published on 7 June.
By John Guinn
Local Democracy Reporter
