About Cem

My Story

Built From the Ground Up

I'm half English, half Turkish — my father moved to the UK in the 1960s and settled in West London, while my mother grew up on a farm and livery stables in Kent. That mix of backgrounds instilled a fairly natural Conservatism in me: a belief in hard work, in standing on your own two feet, and in getting the job done properly. I studied Civil Engineering and Business Management (BEng) at university, which sharpened that further into an analytical mind — one structured to problem-solve methodically and think laterally when confronted with difficult issues, rather than retreat to easy answers. I bring the same discipline to policy that I was trained to bring to technical problems: define the issue clearly, weigh the evidence, and reach a workable solution.

I put that to work first in insurance, in both London and Turkey, before coming back to London to build something of my own. I built my property company from the ground up, starting out renovating small bathrooms and toilets and growing it — through consistent word-of-mouth recommendation — into a company that now renovates entire houses and manages a portfolio of properties running into the dozens. That growth was earned rather than bought: clients have returned and referred others because the work has been done to a high standard, delivered on time, and backed by a straightforward, friendly approach to service.

Running a business has also taught me to manage the ups and downs of a variable income, to plan carefully and be fiscally prudent, while being willing to accept risk and push for success without the safety net of a guaranteed salary. That combination of analytical rigour and entrepreneurial resilience is exactly what I believe is needed in public life: the judgement to think a problem through properly, and the grit to see a difficult course of action through to the end.