Pramila le Hunte

Pramila le Hunte was born in India in 1938 and grew up in Mosaboni, Bihar. She moved to Britain in 1957 to study English literature at Cambridge University. After returning to India, she settled in Richmond in south-west London with her husband and four children. She later trained as an English teacher.

She supported the Conservative Party, becoming chairman of Richmond Council ward, which led to her being asked to stand in a number of seats with large South Asian communities. In 1983 she became the first woman of South Asian heritage to stand for election as a Tory candidate in the seat of Birmingham Ladywood, a Labour Party stronghold. In the end, she did not win the seat, but her campaign managed to double the vote for the Conservative Party in the constituency. She decided not to run in 1987 and returned to her teaching career.

Pramila le Hunte is a published writer and has also written plays. Her standing can be regarded as blazing a trail for future Conservative politicians such as Priti Patel; the seat of Ladywood has subsequently been won by the Labour Party candidate Shabana Mahmood.