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In response to requests, here is a copy of the video transcript (the video itself is not posted here due to avoid copyright issues, but is still fairly easy to find on social media platforms).

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Sagheer: We've had talks over the last year and a half, two years with the council, and just this morning we've had some papers through on email from the council to say the council will give us preferential treatment or first denial on the site next door, so i'll allow Simon to say a few words.

Simon Dudley: Sagheer, thank you, assalamu alaikum, I hope that was reasonably good. I am Simon Dudley, I am the Leader of the Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead, and I wanted to come along and talk to you, because we've been discussing with Sagheer, and Arif as well, how we can make sure that your community has the opportunity to expand over the coming years. I think as you know, there is a lot of work going on in Maidenhead, regeneration of Maidenhead. But what I as the leader of the council, and people like Gurch, as hopefully a future councillor, and the whole Conservative group guarantee to you, is that as the town develops, we will make sure that you have the space to expand here, for the education of your children and the important community worship facilities that you need. With the Ivy Leaf, the council own the freehold of that site and we are negotiating with them for them to surrender their lease. We had thought that we might build apartments, flats on that site. We will never do that. That is my undertaking to you, as the leader, the Conservative leader of the Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead. We have sent an agreement over that when we have control of that site, we will allow the Islamic Trust to acquire that site, so that you can expand here. And indeed, when the Magnet Leisure Centre, we're building a new one along the Braywick Road, when that closes, and we start to build new homes on here, we will make sure that they are set back from the mosque here, that they aren't overlooking it, that it is respectful of your place of worship. So I am going to tell our partners, who are called Countryside, that I want them to redesign their plans to provide both the parking locally, which can be used by people who live there, but also your community as you come to worship, but also that the development is respectful of the mosque. Now, the reason this is important to us, is that your community is an essential part of the community of Maidenhead, and the Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead. So I'm proud to be the leader of a multi cultural local authority, and I'm proud to be a Riverside councillor with so many of you as residents there. And I will always defend your religious beliefs and freedoms as long as I am the leader of the Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead, because you are an essential part of our community and one which I hold in deep respect. So these are my assurances to you, to your families, to your friends. As your community grows, we will ensure that your facilities are able to grow as well, because that's essential in the development of Maidenhead as a town, in exactly the same way that the community at 22 Cookham Road, we made sure that they were able to buy that site a number of years ago. I was instrumental in that, that got that site, and now that is being redeveloped. So the same way that I was true to my word then, I will be true to my word with what I've just said to you, which is being filmed, and that's absolutely fine by me, and you can hold me to account. So I wanted to thank you for your time, I hope when we have our local government elections on the second of May, you will vote Conservative, you will put your crosses, yourselves and your families, next to the tree, the Conservative tree, because it's that political party that is going to help you develop a stronger community here, and the facilities that you and your loved ones need. So hopefully, that, you know, I just wanted to make sure you were all aware of all of that, and thank you very much for giving me some time to say that.

Sagheer: I'd just like to thank Simon for very clearly putting the message out to you, and I hope you understand what he was trying to say about second of May as well, and please make sure that don't waste your vote, and utilise it. Thank you.

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Local Elections 2019

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