Judge them on their intentions

Leaders reveal election pitches

THE YORKSHIRE Post today urges readers to be openminded when they weigh up Boris Johnson, Jeremy Corbyn and Jo Swinson’s respective visions for Yorkshire ahead of next week’s election.

It is customary for party leaders to write eve-of-election articles for newspapers like this title. What is new, however, is the level of detail being offered by the three rival leaders.

A reflection of their respect and regard for this newspaper’s campaigning stance, and how the groundbreaking Power Up The North campaign has, and is, changing the dynamics of the policy debate, it is also indicative of the importance that they attach to Yorkshire’s 54 constituencies. Mr Johnson knows that his party has to make several gains here if it is to win an overall Commons majority next Thursday while Labour and Lib Dems know that a strong showing is crucial if they are to eventually force a second Brexit referendum.

Yet, while the Brexit stances taken by each of the main parties are welldocumented, Britain’s future relationship with the EU is only one element of Yorkshire’s economy, worth £117bn to the 5.4m people who live here. That is why this newspaper tasked each leader with responding to the Manifesto for the North, published at the campaign’s outset, as well as social care, another recurring issue causing great angst to so many families. Rest assured, we will hold them to account over their respective undertakings.

And while, regrettably, each piece will inevitably attract venom and vitriol from anonymous so-called keyboard warriors on social media – many sadly intent on undermining the quality of debate – the fact of the matter is that each registered voter is an equal; everyone has one vote on Thursday, and it is their democratic responsibility to assess the merits of every party, and candidate, from trusted sources, before they decide where to place their X on the ballot paper.