Long-distance call
At just 19 years of age, Steven Cheung this year became Britain's youngest-ever candidate for a seat in the European Parliament.
'I was working with the Chinese community in London and as a researcher for [Prime Minister] Gordon Brown's Youth Citizenship Commission [YCC],' says Cheung. 'It was suggested that I try to become an MEP [Member of the European Parliament] because there was an election coming up. It involved proportional representation and I had a better chance of winning [compared with the English parliament, with its first-past-the-post voting system]. There are 200,000 Chinese in London. If they'd all voted, I would have won.'
Cheung didn't win the seat but he's far from despondent. 'It was a great experience and I learnt many things. There are so many people who need help.'
The son of a chef from Fanling and his Filipino wife, who moved to London with their three sons in 2001, Cheung says opting for a life in politics seemed natural after years of community service, which began in Hong Kong when he was at primary school.
'I would visit old people who lived near my gran. I noticed a lot of them were lonely and separated from society. They didn't have anything to do, they just went to this centre and hung around with other oldies and they felt quite left out. Sometimes when I visited I could see they felt happy because there was a young kid there who was interested in chatting to them. I would bring them food and talk about what's happening in the world outside theirs.
'[Living in Britain] was very difficult for me at first because my English was very broken and I missed my friends in Hong Kong. I went to a rough school in London and I experienced a lot of racism. There were lots of kids from other ethnicities ... and so they teased me.'
Revealing diplomatic skills and a strength of character, Cheung didn't retaliate. 'Instead of getting angry, I joined the school council to mediate between teachers and students and discuss racial tension in school. That's when I understood that talking is the most effective route to solving any issue.'
When he was in the sixth form he was appointed Olympic ambassador for Waltham Forest, the area of east London where he lives.
'I met a lot of influential people including [Olympic gold medal winner] Sebastian Coe, [former London mayor] Ken Livingstone and a lot of politicians,' he says. Cheung's people skills and maturity were soon spotted and he was asked to take part in the YCC.
'The YCC gives the government an overview of citizenship and young people; what they want in the future; how they feel about the lack of opportunities; and how they think the government can serve them better,' he says.
Cheung did all this in his free time - after school and at weekends - often staying up until 3am to finish his reports.
Next year, he hopes to go to Cambridge University to read economics or mathematics. Meanwhile, he will study politics and continue his voluntary work. He wants to pursue politics but doesn't see himself as a prime minister.
'I've met Gordon Brown twice and I think he's got a very difficult job. He's a very hard-working man who gets a lot of criticism.
'I just want to be able to represent the Chinese community in British politics.'
