Festus Akinbusoye | |
|---|---|
.jpg) | |
| Bedfordshire Police and Crime Commissioner | |
| Assumed office 13 May 2021 | |
| Preceded by | Kathryn Holloway |
| Personal details | |
| Born | June 1978 (age 45) Lagos, Nigeria |
| Political party | Conservative |
| Education | City of Westminster College University of the Arts London (BSc) University of London (MSc) |
Festus Akinbusoye (born June 1978) is a British Conservative Party politician who was elected Bedfordshire Police and Crime Commissioner in the 2021 election. He is the first black Briton elected to this role. He was selected in 2023 as his party's candidate for the Mid Bedfordshire by-election following Nadine Dorries' resignation.[1] He lost the by-election, coming in second place to the Labour candidate Alistair Strathern.[2]
Born in Lagos, Nigeria to Nigerian parents, Akinbusoye emigrated in 1991, as a thirteen-year-old with his parents and twin sister. The family settled in Canning Town, East London.[3]
Akinbusoye studied at St Paul's Way School, and the City of Westminster College. He later studied at the London College of Printing and Distributive Trades at the University of the Arts London and read for a master's degree in international studies and diplomacy from the School of Oriental and African Studies at the University of London.[4]
Akinbusoye played basketball at university, and played professionally in what was then called the Budweiser British Basketball League. He has a collection of 40 Air Jordan basketball trainers.[5][6]
In his early career, Akinbusoye worked as senior parliamentary assistant to Mark Lancaster, Iain Stewart and Ben Everitt.[4] He stood as a Conservative candidate in the West Ham constituency in the 2015 United Kingdom general election, where he came second to Labour candidate Lyn Brown.[7]
During the Brexit referendum campaign in 2016, Akinbusoye supported the remain campaign and urged fellow black Britons to join him in voting to remain in the European Union.[8] Akinbusoye served as chairman of Milton Keynes Conservatives from 2018 to 2021, and on 15 June 2023, Akinbusoye was selected as the Conservative parliamentary candidate to contest the 2023 Mid Bedfordshire by-election.[9][4]
In the 2021 election, Akinbusoye was elected Bedfordshire Police and Crime Commissioner. In this role, he has noted his experiences with stop and search as a young man growing up in London, and time mentoring young offenders in prison, as having shaped some of his approach towards policing.[10][11]
During an interview with Beth Rigby on Sky News, Akinbusoye supported the appropriate use of police stop and search powers, having used it himself when serving as a special constable in Bedfordshire Police.[11] Rigby asked about his reaction to the David Carrick case, and Akinbusoye said that "the public quite rightly expect there to be no bad apples" in British policing.[11]
Rigby talked about racism in British society, and mentioned that when Kwasi Kwarteng was chancellor, a Labour MP said that Kwarteng was superficially black; Akinbusoye said "that was exceptionally, exceptionally disgusting; it was exceptionally in my view racist, and stereotyping in the worst way because he [the Labour MP] was suggesting that to be black you have to be able to speak a certain way, to be black you cannot go to Eton, or Oxford, or the top schools in the world because that's not what black people do."[11]
After being selected to contest the 2023 Mid Bedfordshire by-election, he was urged by his local crime panel to stand down as commissioner.[12] A subsequent public meeting revealed the panel decision and open letter calling on Akinbusoye to step down as PCC while campaigning, had not been seen nor agreed to by all panel members as the letter had stated, with a Liberal Democrat member describing the decision as "biased, unfair, undemocratic" and "borderline bullying" of Akinbusoye.[13]
Following the resignation of Nadine Dorries, Akinbusoye was selected by the Conservative Party as their candidate in the 2023 Mid Bedfordshire by-election. He lost to Labour candidate Alistair Strathern.[14]
In January, Akinbusoye announced on Andy Collins BBC Three Counties Radio show that he will not be seeking selection for the coming parliamentary election[15] and will seek re-election for a second term as Bedfordshire PCC[16]
Akinbusoye lives in the Mid Bedfordshire constituency and is a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.[17] Akinbusoye also runs a security business.[18]