Oscar Reaney on banning conversion therapy, abolishing Section 21, and tackling domestic abuse in Tower Hamlets
As part of The Slice Tower Hamlets’ coverage of the 2024 general election, we interview Oscar Reaney, the Conservative Party candidate for Bethnal Green and Stepney.
Oscar Reaney is the Conservative Party candidate for Bethnal Green and Stepney. We quizzed Reaney on the government’s delay in abolishing Section 21, banning conversion therapy, and how the Tory hardline on immigration squares with Tower Hamlets voters.
Reaney grew up in Eckington, Derbyshire, a former coal mining community. He attended St Mary’s RC High School in Chesterfield then studied business at Chesterfield College. Instead of pursuing a university education, he entered the workforce straight after college, first at NHS 111 service and then for the gas and electric company, Utilita.
Reaney then worked as an office manager for Lee Rowley, the former Conservative MP for North East Derbyshire and minister for Housing, Planning and Business Safety. In 2019, Reaney was elected to the North East Derbyshire District Council, serving until May 2023. Now, he’s the parliamentary assistant to Jack Brereton, former MP for Stoke-on-Trent South.
‘My reason for joining the Conservatives is because I believe in hard work,’ says Reaney.
‘My father moved over to the UK from Spain with very little and growing up, I saw him work tirelessly to provide for our family. My mother is also a nurse and I would see her also work endlessly (including nights) to ensure her four children had what they needed.’
He didn’t grow up in a wealthy family, but Reaney credits his parents’ hard work for ensuring that he and his siblings never went without. ‘This example of hard work and never giving up drew me to the Conservatives,’ he says. ‘I believe we all have a positive role to play in society whilst being independent.’
We asked Reaney why he’s running to become an MP for Bethnal Green and Stepney.
For more from the parliamentary candidates in Bethnal Green and Stepney read our interview with Social Democratic Party candidate Jon Mabbutt on Israel-Gaza, migration and family values