Richmond candidates ask for your vote ahead of tomorrow’s General Election

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The nation goes to the polls tomorrow to decide who will form the next Government.

Polls open at 7am and run until 10pm.

The ballot boxes in Richmond will then be collected and taken to Hambleton Leisure Centre in Nortallerton for counting where a result is expected in the early hours of Friday.

This story continues after the adverts:

 

Ahead of the General Election, we asked Richmond’s five election candidates why they should get your vote and this is what they told us:

 

Tobie Abel, Liberal Democrat

Tobie will campaign to give a voice to the many residents who oppose Theresa May’s approach to Brexit and are concerned at the direction the country is taking under her charge. Tobie said: “Over 11,000 constituents voted to remain in the EU and many more are deeply concerned at the way the Tories are approaching the Brexit negotiations.

We believe that the people deserve the final say on the terms of our new relationship with the EU. I want to represent those who worry about the damage five more years of a Tory government will do to our schools, hospitals and rural economy and ensure those voices are heard as the Brexit negotiations move forward.”

Tobie returned to North Yorkshire with his wife six-years-ago, choosing it as the best place to live and raise a family. He said: “I want my son to grow up in an area where honesty and respect are the heart of then community. I want to be your MP because I genuinely fear for the direction the country has taken. I’m asking for your vote so that I can stand up for the things we hold dear in this corner of Yorkshire and to fight to keep Britain open, tolerant and united.”

 

Dan Perry, Labour

I got involved in politics because I was not happy with the coalition government’s response to the global financial crisis of 2008.

Taking support away from those in need, for example the disabled, remains unacceptable to me. Many people need help to lead a dignified life; and what makes it all the more frustrating is that the Tories have cut taxes for those with the broadest shoulders, whilst saying we have no option but austerity.

These are the most drastic cuts since the great depression of the 1920s. We as citizens of this great country deserve better. The Friarage’s maternity unit is no longer Consultant-led. I believe the A&E and Maternity Units are worth fighting for.

We have seen Primary Schools, such as Swainby and Ingleby Greenhow, close or be threatened with closure. Our young people should not have to commute just to get to a good school.

I am a chartered mechanical engineer, registered with the Institution of Mechanical Engineers, and have worked full time in the power generation industry for the last ten years. One of my many passions is sustainable, affordable, reliable electricity generation for all. This has come on leaps and bounds in recent years.

I am also a Councillor on Newcastle City Council; taking the concerns of my residents very seriously. I apply the same principles in local politics as I do in engineering, to find real world solutions to problems we face we must understand the root causes of issues.

As a campaigning party we, in Richmond (Yorks) CLP believe in you and your needs. A vote for Labour is a vote for a listening, active and engaged Member of Parliament.

 

Chris Pearson, Yorkshire Party

I am married with three adult children. I worked as a nurse in mental health services in the NHS for 35 years. I’m someone who has always taken an interest in politics without wishing to get involved.

Over the last four or five years I have become increasingly alarmed at the imbalance in wealth and government spending between different parts of the UK. This is most striking in spending on infrastructure and education. London gets about £10 of infrastructure spending for every £1 that Yorkshire gets, whilst education spending per pupil from 2015/2016 in London was £8587 whilst in York it was just £4202.

Our outdated and crumbling infrastructure affects the development of our economy. Whilst our under resourced education system impacts on the life chances and educational attainment of our children, with the lowest proportion of pupils achieving 5 or more GCSEs at A*-C in the UK. A vote for the Yorkshire party is a vote for greater fairness in how the UK’s wealth is divided.

But it isn’t just about spending. Decision making in London favours London. The Yorkshire Party wants a devolved parliament for Yorkshire with the power to make the best decisions for all people living and working here and businesses based here. With a Yorkshire Parliament, Yorkshire can become stronger and more prosperous.

Never has the need for a Yorkshire Parliament been more urgent. Yorkshire needs a voice in the Brexit negotiations, as a bad deal will affect all parts of our economy. Voting for the Yorkshire Party gives Yorkshire that voice.

 

Rishi Sunak, Conservative

Being your MP since 2015 has been an incredible honour and privilege. If re-elected, I will continue fighting to protect and enhance local services, ensure our young people have the best possible start in life, and support the small businesses that drive our local economy.

Coming from an NHS family – my father was a GP and my mother a pharmacist – I care passionately about access to healthcare. I will campaign to maintain good services at both the Friarage and Darlington hospitals.

I have already helped to win a fairer funding deal for North Yorkshire schools and will keep fighting in Parliament to ensure rural schools do not lose out.

Decent internet and phone signal are as important in rural areas as in cities. I will keep pushing Government to ensure every home has good broadband and mobile coverage. But good public services require a strong economy.

I will continue my work with schools and businesses to support better technical education and apprenticeships. Farming is vital here. I will fight for a post-Brexit British Agricultural Policy which delivers strong financial support and less bureaucracy for British farmers.

In Parliament I will continue campaigning for less red tape and lower taxes for small businesses, promote local tourism, and push for investment in local roads.

I will continue to work my hardest for you and your families and be here to help and listen to your concerns. I very much hope you can place your faith in me again.

 

Fiona Yorke, Green Party

I was born in 1974 in North Yorkshire. I ran my own training company for many years and I now work as a learning consultant for an international company. I’m married to John, a mental-health nurse, with whom I share a passion for cycling – we literally share a tandem.

The following values shape my identity and my experience, and I try to share them with other people: fairness and equality of opportunity; being positive and hopeful; respect for the environment; dialogue and collaboration and compromise. I am a vegetarian who believes we need to help farmers to produce the food that the world needs.

I was inspired to join the Green Party by the following quote from the Party’s Core Values: “The success of a society cannot be measured by narrow economic indicators, but should take account of factors affecting the quality of life for all people: personal freedom, social equity, health, happiness and human fulfilment.”

The Green Party stands for an economy that works for everyone, not just the privileged few, a Britain that’s open to the world, protecting our precious environment. These are some of my other priorities: our NHS run for patients, not profits; build more safe, secure and affordable homes; renewable energy – and ban fracking; scrap university tuition fees; return the railways to public hands – put passengers before profits and give the public a say over whether to accept the final Brexit deal. Let’s care for where we live.