Candidate profiles – Nine stand for two seats in Kemptown

Nine candidates are standing for two seats in Kemptown on Brighton and Hove City Council in the local elections next month. They answered questions sent in by the public via social media.

Why do you want to be a councillor?

Brighton and Hove Independents candidate Alan Towler, 61, is co-owner of the Bristol Bar. He is on Instagram @alantowler and Facebook www.facebook.com/alan.towler.35.

He said: “I share the frustration at the repeated failure of party politics to deliver basic services at a local level.

“The only thing efficiently recycled over the years are the manifestos of Labour and the Greens who follow a national agenda while blaming each other for their collective fiasco in Brighton and Hove.

“I believe we need people embedded in their communities who will put the needs of Brighton and Hove first and do not have one eye looking at Westminster.

“We must get basic services working and stop running the city like a social experiment.

“Kemp Town is home. Kemp Town is where I have lived, worked and run businesses since 1999.

“Brighton and Hove is a special city and, for me, my neighbourhood is the jewel in the crown.

“I’m old enough to remember an action-packed seafront with events every weekend and young enough to hopefully see that again.

“Creative people, independent businesses, wonderful architecture and a great beach.

“We all deserve better than we have been getting and I would love the chance to make Kemp Town the best that it can be.

“Kemp Town specific issues have to start with the restoration of Madeira Terrace and delivering a wider eastern seafront masterplan.

“We need to look again at the impact of Valley Gardens Phase 3 and hopefully rethink the junction to keep everyone moving.

“The closure of the seafront lift making beach access tougher for those with mobility issues and young families.

“A deliverable plan for Black Rock. Supporting tourism and events to boost local trade. Basic services – bins, loos, weeds and graffiti impact our tourist trade in Kemp Town as well as frustrating the residents who pay for them.”

Conservative candidate Josephine O’Carroll, 69, is a retired RAF veteran. She said: “I live in Kemp Town and have seen the way it has deteriorated over the past 12 years since the Green Party and Labour have taken control of the city and I want to get the Conservatives back into power to arrest and reverse the rot.

“I also happen to be the chair of the Kemptown Conservative Association and, in encouraging our members to get more involved in local politics, I need to lead by example.

“I am standing in Kemptown because I have lived here for the last 13 years and its close to my heart.

“I want to see the Madeira Terraces restored as a priority. The council has enough funding available now to restore 80 arches after the Conservative councillor team secured £4.535 million to bring the total up to £12 million.

“As Kemptown’s councillor I would provide the drive to get this restoration under way.

“The main long-term issue is the state of the arches on Madeira Terrace and with the closure of the lift throughout the summer.

“Money seems to be available for multiple road, bicycle and other schemes while the heart of the ward rots away.

“The council’s soft approach to anti-social behaviour in St James’s Street and growing drug use is also an issue.

“I have personally had to clear needle boxes and other drug debris from the doorstep of our building. We need to see the council enforcing the by-laws and installing CCTV.”

Green candidate Lynn-Ora Knott is a semi-retired special needs teacher, musician, performer and actor. She said: “I want to be a councillor to make our city a better and sustainable place.

“I would like us to keep up the pressure on Southern Water to deal with their coastal pollution from their discharges.

“To continue to make our city an exciting place to live and visit. I want to tackle homelessness and provide help for those who are suffering from abuse and have nowhere to turn to.”

“I want to stand in this ward particularly to support community groups, LGBTQIA+ and minority groups, help them to have a voice and to listen to their needs and problems.

“Key issues are landlord licensing and poor-quality housing. We need to be able to monitor landlords to ensure properties are in a good state of repair and that tenants do not experience exploitation or discrimination.”

Green candidate Ben Simmonds, 52, is a sustainable buildings consultant. He said: “As an engineer, I have always had an interest in sustainable technologies which has led to my career in sustainable houses.

“In lockdown I got involved with the council’s school streets programme and I discovered a liking and a knack for community action and local deliverable change.

“I allied this with my sustainable mindset and love for my city of Brighton and Hove to run for council to use my experience and knowledge to create sustainable change for all.

“I have lived and worked in Kemptown ward when it was part of Queen’s Park ward. It has a colourful character and a set of discrete issues, both good and bad, which need addressing.

“The beach is a wonderful place and needs to be maintained and protected.

“I aim to address problems around poor housing and absent landlords. The increases in Airbnb and other non-residential use of buildings, which is part of the economy of Brighton, need to be in line with needs of local residents and people need to feel safe and secure in this unique area of Brighton.

“There are problems with visitor rubbish in street bins, commercial properties being fined for putting the wrong things in rubbish and a need to improve availability of recycling points.

“There is a specific issue with anti-social behaviour with drugs and alcohol around the St James’s Street and Upper St James’s Street area.

“Efforts are progressing to enhance policing and to mitigate potential harms from drugs.”

Labour candidate Bharti Gajjar, 53, said: “As a woman of ethnic minority and with the ability to speak several languages, I wish to be an approachable councillor with proactive listening skills to all members of the community, utilising the spirit of Labour for fairness and openness.

“I would use my role to demonstrate as a Labour councillor that I am responsible, accountable and open to people from all walks of life, as Brighton is diverse and rich in its community.

“Kemp Town village is the best place to live in the city but then I’m biased because I’ve lived here for years. We have wonderful local shops, many of them independent, with great cafés and community pubs too.

“We’re home to a thriving seafront which is currently being improved and I would love to represent my local community and the many entrepreneurial people running businesses here.

“Kemp Town is the wider heartbeat of Brighton and its large sea-facing front. It plays a pivotal role both for tourism and our local community, whether they are having a leisurely stroll in the evening or active small business owners in the ward.

“We need faster action on rubbish and recycling collections and anti-graffiti initiatives. I know Labour councillors fought hard on this but resources for cleaning graffiti continue to go into city centre wards run by the Greens.

“As a Labour councillor, I hope to tackle these issues to bring a positive change to a diverse and welcoming ward.”

Labour candidate Gary Wilkinson works in education and is seeking re-election to the council.

He said: “I have over 20 years of frontline work experience in both the charity and public sectors in Brighton and I am re-standing as a councillor to allow me to continue supporting residents, communities and businesses in making our city a safe, pleasant and vibrant place to live and work.

“Hard working and community-orientated, I will support our residents with their issues and speak up for matters that are important to them especially where their voice may not otherwise be heard or they feel they have no one else to turn to.

“Kemp Town is the thriving heart of the east of the city but for too long the council has prioritised other areas of the city for investment. This needs to stop.

“Having lived and worked in Kemp Town for over 15 years, I care passionately about the area but see on a daily basis the many difficulties residents face.

“In celebrating the diversity and strength which makes Kemp Town so special, we need to listen to and support all our residents.

“I will help work with the whole community to bring real change to Kemp Town so that people can continue to enjoy living there.

“Kemp Town is in serious need of improvement due to investment elsewhere. From Madeira Terraces to St James’s Street, we need an improvement strategy to transform the area.

“Homelessness and poor housing need tackling and we need to protect our private renters by driving up rental standards, with zero tolerance for rogue landlords and regulation of the spread of Airbnbs.

“We also need to urgently restore our neglected basic services through better refuse and recycling, dealing with graffiti tags and introducing public toilets in the area.

“I will work to halt housing overdevelopment and create a Kemp Town that everybody can be proud of.”

Liberal Democrat candidate Robert Brown is a local authority children’s health information service team manager.

He said: “It’s easy to harp from the sidelines and am now in the position to put myself forward having been in politically sensitive jobs for many years.

“I like to proactively create value in my community and support those who need it. Navigating the local authority can be daunting – having worked in two, I know how to do that.

“I live in Kemp Town and love the vibrancy. Knowing many of the business owners, residents and having visited for decades before that, I am horrified to see what previous council administrations have done to the area.

“Kemp Town is an amazing part of the UK which has been neglected – I want to do something about it and be a vocal, approachable and visible voice for residents and businesses.

He said that the key issues in the ward were

• Rubbish
• Graffiti
• The state of the streets
• Lack of toilets / toilet facilities
• Housing
• Crime and anti-social behaviour
• Heritage of the area and the demise of Madeira Terraces

Liberal Democrat candidate Dominique Hall is a homeless charity sector worker. She said: “I want to stand in Kemptown because I live in Kemptown.

“The issues around housing have not changed in 20 years and I want to be a part of the solution.”

She said that the key issues in the ward were anti-social behaviour, the street community and homelessness, crime and the cost of living.

The Conservative Party is fielding a second candidate – Ewan Clinch.

Finding a parking space is getting harder. How will you balance the number of permits to spaces?

Alan Towler said: “Parking in a city designed for horses can never be perfect. In areas of high demand and not enough spaces we have to look at limiting permit numbers per household and financially benefiting those with smaller city-friendly cars.

“I don’t want a war on cars. I think we need an integrated transport plan that recognises cars are essential for some and a curse to others.

“Our household found joining the local car share club was a real boon when our need for car journeys temporarily increased. Perhaps Brighton and Hove could produce a new revenue stream with its own electric fleet.”

Josephine O’Carroll said: “Parking spaces are in short supply. If I get home after 3pm after driving, I have to tour the streets to find a parking place. This will only get worse as electric vehicles and pavement chargers become more common and require more short-term recharging bays.

“Long term, we need more underground car parks. Personally I’d like them to be a requirement for all new large buildings in the city.

“The council’s current short-term policy of increasing the cost of permits hits poor families most while having little effect on those who apply for two or three.”

Lynn-Ora Knott and Ben Simmonds said: “People who need a car or van to work or to get to work quite rightly should have space to park.

“Greens are working to provide alternatives for cars as much as possible, encouraging other forms of transport and ideally preventing vehicle use from increasing any further in our already crowded Victorian Kemp Town streets.”

Bharti Gajjar and Gary Wilkinson said: “When people mention the problem with parking, they’re referring to a lack of space for cars in a particular place. In reality, the parking problem is an issue of overall transport policy.

“Parking management is by far the most common way of managing the demand between spaces and permits.

“We need a neighbourhood parking review to consider the number of parking spaces and the extension of residential parking zones.

“I will also push to make public transport more affordable and accessible while seeking the park and ride schemes that our residents have asked for but Green councillors have ignored.”

Robert Brown and Dominique Hall said: “We can create more spaces by removing or moving bins. In every street, parking spaces are taken up by them.

“Lib Dems are committed to ensuring a review of parking to meet locals’ needs but also to increasing the use of public transport.

“Balancing the number of permits with spaces available will not be easy. We need a cross-party approach, consulting with residents and businesses.

“We support a park and ride scheme which should reduce the need for visitor parking.”

Families of children and young people with special needs struggle to receive support and respite care. How will you help them?

Alan Towler said: “Without more central government funding, it will be tough to free up spaces intended for short-term respite care. Too many places are used to provide long-term care for those who have no other option.

“I’d try to help families navigate the current system and support initiatives that seek to tackle the funding shortfall.

“A former Children’s Commissioner tells me the situation gets worse past the age of 18 so I’d support measures to merge health and social care to streamline care for those in need.”

Josephine O’Carroll said: “I know that these are areas where people are struggling, especially due to the lack of availability of short-term respite as places are filled with permanent residents.

“I am also aware that the need is rising both as a result of the effects of covid and the cost of living.

“I am in favour of ring-fencing funding as a priority but I’m not an expert on the area and haven’t served as a councillor before so can’t really speak to the subject.”

Lynn-Ora Knott and Ben Simmonds said: “We support the Special Educational Needs and Disability Strategy, brought forward by the Green-led council, which seeks to improve the situation for these families via close working with partner organisations and listening to the Parent Carers’ Council.

“It’s clear that these services have suffered from 13 years of funding cuts by the Conservative government but we’ll do everything we can to support families in our area to access these vital services including short breaks and respite care.”

Bharti Gajjar: “As I am living in the new Kemptown ward and as a proactive disabled BAME woman, I have held voluntary meetings to aid the local public on limited governmental support.”

Gary Wilkinson said: “As somebody who works in Kemp Town with young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND), I understand parents and carers caring for a child or young person are juggling lots of things at once and dealing with complex issues.”

Bharti Gajjar and Gary Wilkinson said: “As council budgets and school funding have been cut, families of children with special needs increasingly find they have to battle for help.

“If elected, I will push the council to address the quality of and access to SEN provision, work closer with parents, listening to their concerns, and develop ways to improve our services, including greater support for respite care.”

Robert Brown and Dominique Hall said: “The closure of various support schemes and centres has not helped.

“It is disheartening to see parents of special needs children struggle due to the lack of investment by the council.

“We believe all children should have access to parks and centres ensuring respite care for children and their parents.

“We need to open more centres for young people with special needs, many of which were closed recently by the previous administrations.

“We need additional support for carers and we need to ensure SEN inclusion is included at all schools.”

What steps will you take to bring in park and ride?

Alan Towler said: “While I applaud the scheme at Withdean, I don’t see park and ride as the only solution. I’d like to encourage train travel into Brighton and Hove.

“I’d like to introduce a high-season, free shuttle bus service taking visitors to the beachfront all the way to Black Rock and another route to the i360 and Hove Lawns.

“Park and ride has benefits but I’d love the train to be the first choice for tourists, day-trippers and visitors. On arrival in Brighton and Hove, they’d be greeted with a free travel offer giving them more money to spend enjoying our city.”

Josephine O’Carroll said: “Park and ride, like world peace, is a great idea – I don’t know how we bring it about.

“The council has investigated many sites around the periphery of the city over the last 20 years but all have been rejected at one stage or another because of cost or local objections.

“The only current park and ride is that at the Withdean sports complex and that is experiencing cost issues.

“If someone comes forward with a plan which can get council and local approval, which is financially self-supporting and does not damage the environment, then it will get my backing.”

Lynn-Ora Knott and Ben Simmonds said: “The aim for a park and ride scheme is hampered by its glorious proximity to the South Downs National Park which limits the ability to build a large car park on the city edge.

“All feasibility studies undertaken by different parties when in administration have been unable to identify a suitable site.

“Greens are working hard to encourage other forms of transport such as bus links and cycling to improve access via other means.

“We support the government’s aim to improve the railways via recent reviews but think they should implement these quicker as train fare review is long overdue.”

Bharti Gajjar and Gary Wilkinson said: “Labour’s manifesto and the Labour group’s corporate plan for 2020-23 contained plans to introduce feasibility studies for new park and ride schemes.

“Labour has tried to get these introduced but have been unable to get sufficient support from the Green administration, even though the funds were identified.

“The current unofficial scheme works well and could easily be expanded. New smaller schemes could be brought on across the city.

“An interim response, which has already begun, is to reduce charges in car parks at the weekend to encourage drivers to shorten journeys and move on by bus, foot or by bike.”

Robert Brown and Dominique Hall said: “Liberal Democrats in Brighton and Hove support the idea of a park and ride scheme.

“We have identified land off the Patcham roundabout on the A23. We believe the park should be landscaped into the South Downs National Park.

“It should be serviced by a fleet of small electric buses that provide a continuous service stopping only in central Brighton and central Hove.

“Such schemes work on the continent. See, for example, the French city of Arras. The service would be charged to motorists although it would need seed funding from central government.”

Polling day is Thursday 4 May. Photo ID is required for those voting in person.