The Sunday Telegraph

Tory group in drive to attract more black people to party

- By Edward Malnick

A NEW Conservati­ve group is being formed to discuss how to attract more black voters and politician­s to the party.

This week, senior black Tories will gather at a dinner hosted by Wilfred Emmanuel-Jones, founder of The Black Farmer range of food products and a former Tory candidate, aimed at “bringing about change” to ensure more black people consider the party is “for them”.

The event, organised by Festus Akinbusoye, the Conservati­ve police and crime commission­er for Bedfordshi­re Police, is timed to coincide with the start of Black History Month this week.

Those expected to attend the dinner at the RAC Club in Pall Mall include Conservati­ve minister James Cleverly, former London mayoral candidate Shaun Bailey, Boris Johnson’s former race adviser Samuel Kasumu, and Myles Stacey, a current No 10 adviser.

However, some Tory sources questioned how representa­tive the group would be of black Conservati­ves, given that no black female MPs appeared to have been invited to take part.

Mr Akinbusoye said: “There is something to be said that there’s space for black men to be able to meet together to talk about the particular challenges they face as black men in society, but also, within politics.”

He added: “I hope by doing this my colleagues will feel supported, but also feel encouraged not to forget that there is a world of people in Britain who ordinarily will not join the Conservati­ves or look at the Conservati­ves as allies unless we engage with them.”

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