Ten candidates are standing for two seats in Brunswick and Adelaide 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 Chris Woodley has owned and run the Palmeira Square flower stand for 25 years.
He said: “I live and work in Brunswick and Adelaide and voted Green in the last election. They promised so much and delivered so little for residents.
“From recycling, potholes in the roads, footpaths overgrown with weeds, they have failed, failed and failed again to get a grip with the rudimentary tasks of running our city.
“They are responsible for the financial disaster which is the i360 and I’ve had enough of their mad schemes. My business acumen and common sense would help bring sanity back to Hove Town Hall.
“I know what needs to be done to make life better for the other people who live and work here too. I am ready.
“We need to go back to basics: bins, pavements, drains, graffiti and cleanliness, public toilets, parks and open spaces.
“Move the A259 bike lane in Hove back to its original space on the pavement. The congestion and pollution it causes is unacceptable.
“Support local businesses by opposing the extension of the bike lane to the west.
“Campaign for better lighting on the seafront to increase safety and enable night-time exercise
“Re-look at parking zones and permits. Too many people drive around aimlessly in our area looking for a space.”
Friends of Brighton and Hove candidate Dave Hall, 67, is a retired seafront café owner. Mr Hall has lived and worked in and near Brunswick and Adelaide ward for 50 years.
He said: “I am fed up seeing the city I love neglected and driven into this ground and believe local people need to put themselves forward if our city is ever to be put first and restored to a thriving seaside resort again.
He said that the key issues for the ward were potholes, public toilets and graffiti.
Green candidate Hannah Allbrooke, 30, is a communications manager for a local charity who is seeking re-election to the council. She is on Twitter @hannalytical, Instagram @cllr.hannah.allbrooke, Facebook facebook.com/hannahellenclare and TikTok @hecallbrooke.
She said: “We (Phélim Mac Cafferty and I) are both re-standing to represent the community that we have had the pleasure of representing.
“Being a councillor has been the best job in the world – there is a huge amount of joy involved in what we do.
“I have the experience both from forming part of the council leadership team and from being ward councillor to deliver what residents need.
“Brunswick and Adelaide is a unique part of the city with rich heritage but also a lot of hidden poverty. We have the knowledge and experience to continue helping residents tackle the issues it faces.
“This area has been represented by Green councillors over the last 12 years and we have continued to work hard to improve it. But our hard work is not done, and nor is my passion for change.”
Green candidate Phélim Mac Cafferty, 44, is the council leader and is seeking re-election to the council. He is on Twitter @Phelimmac and Facebook facebook.com/CllrPhelim.
He said: “This will be the third time I have stood for re-election for the Brunswick and Adelaide ward, the second time re-standing with Hannah.
“I’m reliable, visible and trusted to get on with helping residents with their issues. Helping residents win – it can be a problem with their landlord, an illegally parked car, a blocked drain, a missed refuse collection – is still, 12 years on, what compels me to do the job to the best of my abilities.
“I believe that I have more to give to the community and with your support I want to do more.”
“I have lived in and around this special neighbourhood for nearly 20 years. In my 12 years of being a councillor for the area I know it extremely well and have worked hard to build strong relationships with many residents and resident groups.
“We have a community with a huge heart here but it’s also a community with long-standing stubborn problems – pensioner poverty and poorly managed rented homes.
“So there’s lots of work still to do but, with experienced hands on the tiller, residents can re-elect a team who will continue to put their issues first.”
Hannah Allbrooke and Phélim Mac Cafferty said: “Brunswick and Adelaide is a seafront ward, meaning a number of residents experience both the upsides and downsides of living by the sea, such as the noise and disruption from events.
“As a ward with communal bins, many residents raise issues with refuse and recycling which is why we are pleased to be introducing a trial after the election to make changes.
“Finally, as the ward has the highest proportion of private rented housing in the city, we often support residents with the standards of their housing.”
Labour candidate Jilly Stevens, 74 is a retired former journalist and director of consumer affairs for Experian and a consumer education consultant.
She said: I love living in Brighton and Hove. It is a special place. But I despair at the state of our streets and how the Greens have mismanaged the budget and prioritised vanity projects.
“I have the experience and the skills to be an effective councillor. I believe that problems are solved when people put aside their differences and work together to find solutions.
“As a councillor I would do just that. I would listen to residents and work with them to make sure their views are properly understood by the council.
“I have lived in Brunswick and Adelaide for 15 years. I see overgrown pavements, overflowing bins and graffiti. I want our streets to be safe and clean.
“I have a vested interest in this neighbourhood and in the issues that affect the whole city. My family all live in Brighton and Hove.
“I want it to be a healthy, environmentally responsible, fair place for my grandson to be educated, live and work – and for him to afford to rent or buy here. And I want it to be somewhere all of us can safely grow old.”
She said that the key issues in the ward were to improve the refuse and recycling collections, consult with residents on bin sites, licensing private landlords, protect the Brunswick Town conservation area and challenge Southern Water on sewage discharges.
Labour candidate Andrei Czolak, 28, is a senior project manager in market research. He is on Twitter @AndreiCzolak.
He said: “I’m very proud to call this city home. This great city is made by the amazing people who live here and in recent years they have deserved far better than what they’ve been getting from their council.
“I have the skillset that would enable me to be an effective councillor, ensuring that by working with the community I can deliver the right solutions to resident’s problems.
“Living in the area during lockdown, I saw a community who were willing to go above and beyond to help one another, who were selfless to ensure that everyone was looked after.
“When we had little else to do, walking around the area reminded me what a beautiful part of the city it is and just how much its residents want to ensure it’s properly cared for.
“I want to stand in this ward to help ensure this area is properly looked after and that residents are given the support they deserve.”
He said that the key issues in the wards included action on anti-social behaviour, the area free of graffiti and action on overgrown weeds.
Liberal Democrat candidate Claire Lachlan is a pensions specialist. She said: “I think we can all agree, the council has not been run efficiently.
“We need to improve recycling, with just 29 per cent of rubbish being recycled, well below the national average of 46 per cent.
“I have good ideas to make our council more efficient. Electing me to the council would ensure that your commitment to recycling is worthwhile.
“Like everyone in Brighton, I have noticed that public toilets are being shut but, rather, money needs to be spent on improving them.
“I have a keen interest in the preservation of the Brunswick and Adelaide area and will strive to see more is done on this.
“I live very close to the Brunswick and Adelaide ward and know about the importance of preserving this beautiful ward with its outstanding architecture.
“I have taken steps in the past to helping areas achieve what they want in terms of preservation and will bring this knowledge and understanding when I work as a councillor.
“I also want to ensure that the rubbish can be handled effectively. Those that live in this area have two votes – if they use one of them for me, I won’t let them down.”
She said that the key issues in the ward were preservation, refuse and recycling, reducing parking permit charges and reinstating public toilets.
Trade Unionist and Socialist Coalition (TUSC) David Maples, 63, is a homeless family support worker. He said: “Councillors have a privileged position in shaping the future of our city.
“I want Brighton and Hove to be fully inclusive. This means a council which addresses poverty as well as other issues. The council’s response to the ongoing ‘cost of living crisis’ has been tokenistic.
“It has increased council tax by the maximum amount possible and increased other charges such as parking. It even wants to charge for toilets.
“I want to be part of the campaign to get the £100 million central government has taken from Brighton back so we can afford to live here.
“There are plenty of challenges in this ward. I feel that my housing experience would be invaluable in working with residents and campaigners to tackle the housing crisis.
“As many inner-city residents do not have a car, I would also campaign for good quality, safe, accessible and regular public transport along with safe arrangements for pedestrians and cyclists.”
“Many rented properties are in terrible condition – damp, badly maintained, poorly executed and cramped conversions rented out at extortionate rents.”
He said that he would campaign for the council to
- introduce a comprehensive landlord licensing system
- introduce rent controls
- establish a comprehensive private sector housing advice service
- recruit sufficient environmental health housing officers to make sure defects are dealt with and negligent landlords prosecuted
…
The Conservatives are fielding two candidates – Richard Latham and Keith Sharpe.
The drains are often blocked creating a “lake of sewage” in Adelaide Crescent. What will you do to improve maintenance?
Chris Woodley said: “Divert money from the multiple vanity projects and focus on delivering the basics.”
Dave Hall said: “Liaise with Southern Water to undertake a drain condition survey with CCTV followed by a full audit and implementation of a rolling programme of works as a result.”
Hannah Allbrooke and Phélim Mac Cafferty said: “We know that the drainage at Adelaide Crescent needs improving which is something that the residents groups for the area, Friends of Palmeira and Adelaide and the Palmeira and Adelaide Garden Fund, have raised both with councillors and council officers.
“The crescent was cleared within the last few weeks and it was discovered that the grates and gullies are full of silt so they need a deep clean.
“We are working with Cityparks to ensure this is done as soon as reasonably possible.”
Andrei Czolak and Jilly Stevens said: “The council has recently allocated £100,000 to continue investment in addressing problems associated with damaged highway drainage which causes surface water. We will make sure some of these funds are spent here too.”
Claire Lachlan said: “It is worrying to hear that this is a repeated experience for the residents of this iconic part of the Brighton seafront.
“If it is a problem with the drain, then it may well be the responsibility of Southern Water. If sewage is involved then that is likely to be the case.
“Any Lib Dem local councillor would regard such a problem as one to be tackled urgently regardless of which authority is ultimately responsible.”
David Maples said: “This is the result you get when the council makes back-office ‘efficiency savings’.
“Gully and street cleaning is an important service but is just the type of service which has been cut to the bone.
“The council also needs to adequately prepare for the increase in extreme weather.
“Southern Water has also turned the sea into a ‘lake of sewage’. Southern Water is unfit to provide a public service. The parasites should be driven out and replaced with a public service under democratic workers’ control and management responsive to local communities.”
How will you limit the amount of student housing in the city so we can have more affordable homes?
Chris Woodley said: “A few things need to happen – and fast. A grown-up conversation with the universities about their expansion plans.
“For the council to identify land and properties that it already owns that could be used for new affordable homes.”
Dave Hall said: “It is not lawful to discriminate between types of tenants. But the city would have a lot more affordable housing if it did not let developers buy or beg their way out of 40 per cent affordable housing provision in each new-build block.”
Hannah Allbrooke and Phélim Mac Cafferty said: “Student housing in the city has been built solely by private developers and universities, not the council.
“Unfortunately, councillors have very little control over where or when private developments are constructed due to the precedence of the government’s National Planning Policy Framework.
“Where purpose-built student accommodation is constructed on the university campuses, it means there are more homes for communities.
“However, what we can control is how the council responds to the affordable housing crisis.
“Over the last four years, the council has built or bought nearly 500 new council homes. Greens have pledged if re-elected to build 800.”
Andrei Czolak and Jilly Stevens said: “Labour will overhaul the city’s housing strategy to prioritise local needs and use all means possible to create really affordable homes, to rent or buy, for local people.
“Student housing is just one factor. Labour will ban the sale of homes in new developments as second homes.
“We will work to improve housing for everyone and repurpose empty buildings into affordable homes.
“Our universities are important to the city’s economy – quality, affordable student housing enhances our reputation as an attractive place to study.”
Claire Lachlan said: “New student housing should in theory release more houses from being HMOs (houses in multiple occupation) and so release more family accommodation.
“The council should purchase any HMOs that come on to the market with a view to returning them to single units.
“Unfortunately, most of the new student housing in the city is beyond the means of the average UK student and so will be rented to overseas students who may not be occupying existing houses or flats at the moment.”
David Maples said: “Why is this presented as either/or? Government policy to increase council and housing association rents and to reduce funding to build new homes has caused the housing crisis.
“Pokey new-build flats from private developers are not the answer. We need a large building programme of family-sized accommodation and specialist housing be built to high environmental standards to meet need.
“These tenancies need to be at affordable rents rather than market rents.”
How supportive are you of using automatic number place recognition (ANPR) technology to enforce school streets road closures?
Chris Woodley said: “Seems quite draconian. We need to examine the scale of the problem and what all the options are before spending any money.”
Dave Hall said: “I am wholly against discrimination or penalty charges towards those with legally owned vehicles.
“We are also a tourist resort. We need our visitors. And people need to work, live and shop here.”
Hannah Allbrooke and Phélim Mac Cafferty said: “Greens put forward the idea of school streets when in opposition because we saw how transformative they have been in other areas.
“They make it safer for children when travelling to school, as well as making the air around our schools cleaner and healthier to breathe.
“Unfortunately, we do not have the same powers as London councils which means we need to try other methods of enforcement and rely heavily on the kind support of volunteers.
“We support ANPR which would make this much easier.”
Andrei Czolak and Jilly Stevens said: “We are in favour of all measures to keep our school streets and our children safe and to encourage parents to use means other than cars to take children to school wherever possible.”
Claire Lachlan said: “ANPR could be a last resort if campaigns to change behaviour and the use of traffic wardens fail.”
David Maples said: “I am opposed to pitting one section of the population against another. Environmental improvement schemes shouldn’t be used to price low-income users of the streets.
“Due to inadequate public transport and complicated journeys, many parents need to use cars to get to work and childcare. They shouldn’t be punished for this.
“Traffic management schemes need to be designed with sufficient traffic engineers and public consultation rather than being enforced from above.
“Where restrictions are introduced there needs to be very clear signage and a sympathetic appeals process. I would oppose fines for drivers making a first mistake.”
Polling day is Thursday 4 May. Photo ID is required for those voting in person.
The Green Parody in a sentence:
“I have the experience both from forming part of the council leadership team and from being ward councillor to deliver what residents need.
“what residents need” translated – not what they need, not what they want, what I say they need.
I think the most telling comment was from the Greens that said they have represented the ward for 12 years. So let’s look at their achievements 1) The gardens are so overgrown that we have man size weeds in them and the residents are now forced to take back control of them and do most of the gardening.
Instead of arranging for frequent bin collections they wish to impose huge giant extra bins all over the square which is grade 1 listed and which people don’t want.
In terms of heritage even though there is an act of parliament enforcing the painting cycle three years on from the painting date the council have still not made sure all the buildings have been painted.
Events: As transpride has now grown to 10,000 people we no longer want it in our small square and we were assured by the council in 2022 this would not happen again. 500 people was fine but we are tired of this event trashing the gardens which the council fail to maintain and at these number levels the majority of residents now want it moved and are furious that the council has deliberately ignored the requests of the resident association to do this.
We also just want a waiting list for the number of parking permits issued not a ULEZ zone that charges tradesman, and friends who have diesel or older petrol cars from visting us. This has been ignored too and in response the Green run council has issued more car permits with no waiting list unlike all other parties when they were in power.
In summary we just want councillors that engage, listen to and help deliver the basic requirements of their job well. Not spend their time thinking up new schemes almost no one wants.