STEWART GOLTON – LIBERAL DEMOCRATS

OUR EXPERIENCE of Covid on top of the climate-change emergency calls for a complete refocus on transport, housing, economic development and adult education that the mayor has responsibility for.

I will use my 20 years in local government to work to develop “15-minute neighbourhoods” to revive our town, district and village centres to harness the potential of homeworking to rebalance economic growth.

I will end public transport spending that allows private bus companies to increase their profits while doing little to address unreliability and rising prices.

HS2 is an overpriced white elephant. I will get more carriages and greater frequency on our routes and deliver transpennine connectivity through Northern Powerhouse

Rail. To tackle climate change we need green jobs for the future. Let’s get more of our food grown locally, help farmers generate more renewable energy, increase tree cover and develop leisure tourism.

Let’s get more zero-carbon housing built by local companies that people can afford.

The care of our vulnerable and elderly cannot be left to big corporate players. I hope to develop a quantum growth in small and micro-enterprises in community care. On crime, my priority will be to insulate young people from being sucked into the criminal justice system in the first place.

Rebuilding the delivery of community policing and tackling adult neighbourhood anti-social behaviour are key to nurturing supportive homes within a safe environment.