East Brighton candidate spotlight

East Brighton candidates explain why they want to be a councillor. They also answer questions sent in by the public via social media.

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Eleven candidates are standing for the three Brighton and Hove City Council seats in East Brighton ward.

Why do you want to be a councillor?

Nichole Brennan is standing for Labour:

Labour is the party of social justice, human rights  and equality. I want to bring all these principles to Whitehawk and East Brighton. I am already a strong voice for the homeless and people who live in emergency and temporary accommodation and now I want to also do this for my residents.

I want to see local people building houses for the locals at social rents, not so called “affordable rents”. I want to help solve the problems of youth crime/ boredom by helping to facilitate a youth forum that will be peer led to get facilities that the youth really want.

I want to see better facilities for all and help bring back a feeling of security and sense of worth in this forgotten/deprived area. It’s time money was spent here just like it is in Hove. I want to help raise the life expectancy, the esteem and a sense of community. I will listen to your issues, help solve them and be a visible councillor.

Paul Chandler is a travel agent standing for the Liberal Democrats.

I have been a councillor before (not in Brighton) and it is the most rewarding experience. I have always believed that rather than complain about things, you should roll up your sleeves and get on with making them better.

Bryan Coyle is standing for the Greens.

Nancy Platts is a campaigns and communications consultant standing for re-election with Labour.

Anna Shepherd is standing for the Greens.

Paul Steedman is standing for the Greens.

Dave Trangmar is a business analyst and is standing as an Independent.

There is a loss in faith in politics, particularly for the two major parties at both a local and national level. I know many people feel the same. The divisive nature of our city politics in particular both within and across parties has led to a very toxic atmosphere. Things don’t have to be like this.

Where East Brighton ward is concerned, one resident said to me: “We are the forgotten part of the city.” I want to play my part in changing that by working constructively and collaboratively across the political parties to make East Brighton ward and the city a better place to live.

Gill Williams is a university lecturer standing for Labour.

I firmly believe in the values that the Labour Party stands for today – social justice, equality and fairness. That means respecting the rights of everyone to be treated equally and to be provided with access to opportunity and a decent standard of living irrespective of income or background. I am committed to striving to achieve the best possible environment for our local people in East Brighton and across the city.

What are you views on the design and impact on traffic of the Valley Gardens phase 3 project in Old Steine which includes making Madeira Drive one-way by the Palace Pier?

Nichole Brennan, Nancy Platts and Gill Williams: The designs are currently being drawn up to a detailed design stage. All comments and issues raised are being addressed and we hope to see a detailed scheme which meets the needs of all residents and businesses/ visitors expected.

Those detailed designs will have to ensure that the city keeps moving while addressing the impacts of the climate change emergency and supporting a modern city where sustainable transport routes are protected and enhanced.

Paul Chandler: The more details that emerge of the scheme the worse it looks. In spite of a lengthy consultation (after which many of the public’s objections were ignored), I am not at all sure that this new scheme will be an improvement. It could be too late to stop it, but the next council may well be involved in putting right what is unworkable in the scheme.

Bryan Coyle, Anna Shepherd and Paul Steedman: The Valley Gardens project was envisaged as a desperately needed green lung for the city centre and to improve walking and cycling. Phase 3 covers the area that is the city’s “accident blackspot”. It’s a critical opportunity to cut serious injuries, many to cyclists.

The last Green council administration won £8 million of external funding to pay for the project. Labour’s delays to the scheme threatened this hard-won cash and left the council scrambling to get the project to completion.

In this late and rushed process, there was inadequate consultation with residents and local businesses. Greens have pushed for better acknowledgement of the concerns raised. We have won assurances over new cycle lane provision and have heard that organisations such as Bricycles and Friends of the Earth now on board.

Dave Trangmar: More green spaces are good for the environment and people. Increasingly the inner parts of the city need to become more pedestrian and public transport orientated.

It is the right thing for air quality, the quality of life of our residents and the right thing for tourism, but businesses need to know their suppliers and customers can reach them.

This scheme needs to be thought about as part of a wider strategy such as park and ride schemes on the outskirts of the city so as to reduce the need for cars to come into the city centre.

There is a huge problem with dog owners leaving waste behind, either in bags or just out in the open in parks and street. What will you do to tackle dog owners not picking up poo?

Nichole Brennan, Nancy Platts and Gill Williams: Our new enforcement officers who have been brought in-house are out and about in neighbourhoods and targeting those whose anti-social behaviours are affecting all our lives. We need to both educate and enforce our way out of this problem and we want that message to get through to all who choose to leave dog mess across our city.

Paul Chandler: This is still a big problem even though measures have been taken. We need to improve signage and the availability of waste bins. Increasing social pressure on dog owners to behave responsibly is the main way forward.

Bryan Coyle, Anna Shepherd and Paul Steedman: We need to ensure that the city’s enforcement officers (following the abandonment of Labour’s disastrous outsourcing experiment) make tackling owners who do not pick up their dogs’ waste a priority, alongside fly-tipping. It’s not just about “sticks”. We need more “carrots” too. More designated bins – especially in areas popular with dog walkers – will help dog walkers who intend to do the right thing.

Dave Trangmar: I would want to understand which areas have the biggest problem and see if there are enough disposal units which dog owners can use and address any shortfalls. Alongside this put further signage up so it is easier to see where dog waste can be left and leaflet householders as to the health impacts of dog waste being left in the street.

I also would ask the council to use the enforcement officers to monitor these areas and to offer friendly advice to dog owners as to where they can leave/deposit their dogs waste. I do not believe going in heavyhanded and fining people is the answer. Education and adequate provision is the watchword here.

The council is planning more electric vehicle charging points. To what extent do you support this and will you commit to electric vehicle only parking spaces?

Nichole Brennan, Nancy Platts and Gill Williams: We fully support the installation of electric vehicle charging points (EVCPs) and in fact it is the Labour council that successfully bid for £300,000 funding from the government to allow the installation of 200 EVCPs.

Test sites are already in operation. It was noted at committee last June that the scheme might need to allow for mandatory parking bays for electric vehicle charging in the event, for example, it becomes clear that electric vehicle owners are having problems accessing advisory bays or to adapting over time to increased demand.

Paul Chandler: Electric vehicles are the future. We should do everything we can to make Brighton a beacon of support for electric vehicles.

Bryan Coyle, Anna Shepherd and Paul Steedman: We are fully committed to rolling out electric vehicle charging points, both on street and in car parks. The speed and scale of the roll-out needs to significantly increase.

Charging points need to be installed sensitively, so that they do not obstruct pavements or cycle routes – and we need to look at innovative options for using, eg, existing street lamps to act as charging points.

We support the policy of reserving spaces by charging points for electric vehicles. We also need to put in place further incentives to help people switch to zero-emission transport, whether that it is by moving to an electric car, or by making journeys by electric bus, cycling or walking.

Dave Trangmar: I fully support this and think there should be electric vehicle only parking spaces. However, we need to be mindful where parking is tight there needs to be resident consultation.

The roll-out must be informed in part by use of parking permit car type data to identify areas where the scheme can be targeted on an ongoing basis. This way, as electric car ownership increases, provision can match this. Equally proactive provision will encourage residents to buy electric cars.

If you design with children in mind, you also make it good for older people and create a healthier and more inclusive place that everyone can enjoy. How are you going to make the city safe and attractive for children to move around independently?

Nichole Brennan, Nancy Platts and Gill Williams: We need a range of measures to be delivered across the whole city – better protected cycling and walking routes are key to this as well as a safe reliable public transport system.

We are also committed to setting up a fund to support improved community safety and neighbourhood policing measures to give people confidence in the safety and responsiveness of their local communities.

Paul Chandler: I agree absolutely that children and old people – and everybody else – benefit from a cleaner safer and healthier environment. Certainly I would expect all secondary age children to be able to walk or cycle to school on their own where practical. Only today a report has indicated that the UK is one of the worst countries in Europe for childhood asthma. We must do more to tackle pollution.

Bryan Coyle, Anna Shepherd and Paul Steedman: Improving pedestrian routes, road crossings, cycle routes and bus services all make the city safer and easier for children, older people and others with mobility difficulties to navigate.

We would also like to see better enforcement of speed restrictions on our roads – cars are the number one cause of death and serious injury for children and young people and we would like to see our streets made as safe as possible for everyone.

In addition, tackling anti-social behaviour and drug-related activity give children, parents and older people more confidence that moving around the city independently is safe.

Dave Trangmar: We need to ensure the bus service is good for all children particularly in the city’s outlying areas where the frequency of bus service is limited. We need further development of cycle lanes where possible and to ensure there are sufficient “safe rooms/places” for children to use. Intergenerational activities have been shown to work well elsewhere and should be considered here.

What is your commitment to youth work, especially on the estates and city fringes where there are few other services and higher levels of need?

Nichole Brennan, Nancy Platts and Gill Williams: We have committed to review, support and to enhance our youth services across the whole city. Money spent on youth service provision is paid back in the long term through improved communities and more engaged young people, many of whom are a credit to the people who currently deliver youth services.

Paul Chandler: Youth services are one of the areas where the city council has made the deepest cuts in recent years. This is not cost effective because outreach work with young people pays dividends in later years. When will prosperity return and austerity end? I hope we can spend more on this vital service and as a councillor I will be an advocate for doing so.

Bryan Coyle, Anna Shepherd and Paul Steedman: Youth work is a vital service to young people. It provides space for young people, somewhere to go, a friendly adult to build a relationship with, someone to talk to. Plus, it provides activities – something to do. Most of this will be accessible precisely to those who can’t take “something to do” for granted. They may not have the family income to access it.

Having fought, over the last four years, successive waves of proposed cuts, we will protect funding for youth services and support the delivery of a new Brighton Youth Centre and more playgrounds. We will also
• create a long-term health plan for the youth of the city
• maintain provision for children with additional support needs and for those from marginalised groups, including refugees and LGBT+ young people
• support early intervention programmes in schools to address sex discrimination and sexual harassment
• work with schools to encourage access to sports facilities and kitchens during school holidays

Dave Trangmar: I will work with community activists to understand the issues and needs of East Brighton ward and the issues young people face. East Brighton has the Crew Club, the Brighton Met East Campus and other facilities. As well as ensuring these succeed in meeting those needs, we need to ensure things like the Brighton Festival and the new South East Dance headquarters are inclusive of young people from all backgrounds. All major projects should include local recruitment, apprenticeships and career opportunities for local young people.

In East Brighton / Kemp Town it does seem silly for the council to have to pick up the bill for travel to secondary school just because there isn’t one within three miles. To what extent would you say there is a need for a dedicated secondary school for this area?

Nichole Brennan, Nancy Platts and Gill Williams: The city council did work with the University of Brighton to look at establishing a secondary school for the local community. However, this additional capacity wasn’t met with the increase in numbers of secondary school aged children. Currently we cannot commit to start a new school if it would make our existing schools unsustainable but this will be kept under review in line with best practice.

Paul Chandler: My own son had to travel to Varndean for his secondary education and, yes, it is a long trip. East Brighton is poorly served for schools and there was excitement when Brighton University announced plans for a new secondary school on our side of the city. Those plans had to be shelved when Brighton and Hove Council withdrew support and announced plans to expand existing schools instead.

Unfortunately projections over the next five years do not indicate a pressing shortage of secondary school places in the city. If elected I will undertake to survey the possibilities once again and bring forward a consultation with parents in East Brighton.

Bryan Coyle, Anna Shepherd and Paul Steedman: The last Green administration put forward plans for a new secondary school in the east of the city. Under the current Labour administration they were dropped, amidst their chaotically managed review of catchment areas.

Dave Trangmar: The numbers of pupils at the moment just don’t make that viable. There has been a huge amount of work and debate on a new school and catchment areas in the past few years and it is time to move on.

All our secondary schools are good and we need to celebrate that while driving on improvement all the time. Ideally all secondary pupils would walk to school but in this city that just is not possible, so we need to find practical, affordable and realistic transport solutions that support children’s education.

Other candidates standing in East Brighton ward are Conservatives Tony Meadows, William Rudrum and George Soper.