In the run up to the General Election on May 6, the Enfield Independent is featuring profiles on the candidates vying for your votes. Today we feature Andrew Charalambous, Conservative Party candidate for Edmonton.

SELF-styled green guru Andrew Charalambous is described by his team as “the candidate for the silent majority” who says what ordinary people are thinking.

The 38-year-old has lived in Edmonton for 18 years and says he is committed to saving Chase Farm Hospital and stopping the downgrading of North Middlesex Hospital.

He claims he was "disgusted by the expenses scandal" and is dedicated to "restoring trust" in Parliament.

Mr Charalambous said: "Nothing is more important than our health. Labour's plans to close the Chase Farm A&E means 12,000 more people using North Middlesex, creating an enormous burden on already strained services.

"The Conservatives and I have given a cast-iron guarantee that on day one all cuts will be halted.

"If anything we need to expand our services. We need to give our hospitals the freedom to run themselves, free from centralised control.

"We need local elected representatives on the board of trustees with average wages akin to councils - real community hospitals run by the community for the community."

After studying at Queen Mary University, Mr Charalambous became a barrister and professor of environmental sciences.

Once dubbed "a different kind of social entrepreneur" by the Financial Times, the property developer has dedicated much of his life to reducing homelessness in north London through an innovative social housing scheme that allows poorer tenants to avoid paying rent and deposits.

He is also patron of the Leukaemia Society and founder of Club4Climate, a global environmental organisation that pioneered the world's first ever ecological nightclub. The King's Cross bar features a piezoelectric dance floor that generates electricity by harnessing people's movements.

Mr Charalambous stood as the Conservative parliamentary candidate against the late Bernie Grant MP in 1992 as the youngest candidate of that General Election of any main party. He is a Christian Fellowship activist, and campaigned passionately against the Iraq and Afghanistan wars, and the Guantanamo Bay detention centre.

He has served 15 years as a special constable for the City of London police service and Honourable Artillery Company, and says this experience has given him a "unique insight" into the impact of crime and how to stop it.

Mr Charalambous said: "Crime affects us all. If elected, within 28 days I will sit down with borough commanders to implement real zero tolerance on our streets with a drastic increase in visible policing.

"We need a permanent presence at Edmonton Green bus station where we continue to see knife attacks."

The Edmonton candidate also wants to bring a tube station to the area and has led calls for a national holiday to mark English culture and heritage.

For more information visit www.andrewcharalambous.co.uk.