Parties lock horns on congestion, anti-social behaviour and e-scooters
Candidates hoping to represent North and South Jesmond after Thursday’s elections have debated a range of questions put to them by local voters at this JesmondLocal‘s first online hustings event
In normal times, JesmondLocal usually holds election hustings at Jesmond Library, but, COVID-19 restrictions meant Tuesday’s (May 4th) hustings was held by Zoom in front of an audience of more than 60 local voters.
Eight of the 10 candidates standing in the two wards took part: for the Liberal Democrats, Tom Appleby and Deborah Burns; Charlie Gray and Tanya Pretswell, for the Labour Party; Laurence Taylor for the Greens; Olly Scargill for the Conservatives; Brian Moore for the North East Party; and Martin Evison appeared for Reform UK. Melissa Jane Pearson of the Conservative Party and Tim Dowson of the Green Party were unable to take part. JesmondLocal’s team of reporters covered the event with a live blog and tweets using the hashtag #VoteJesmond.
Moderated by JesmondLocal editors Ian Wylie and Chris Stokel-Walker, the wide-ranging discussion took in anti-social behaviour, congestion, e-scooters, vehicle emissions and houses of multiple occupation (HMOs). Here’s a summary of the main talking points:
1. What proposals do the candidates have to reduce the disproportionate number of student HMOs in Jesmond, so as to create a more balanced and viable community?
Laurence Taylor of the Green Party praised students, who bring “life, diversity and hard cash” to Jesmond, but said he agreed there are too many HMOs in the area. He suggested that HMO licences should be made more expensive, and that landlords who did not comply with regulations be dealt with more harshly.
Olly Scargill of the Conservatives, himself a student, agreed on the benefits that students bring to the area, before praising the way in which Labour councillors had handled the situation so far. Brian Moore of the North East Party also stated his support for selective licensing for HMOs.
Deborah Burns of the Lib Dems argued that Jesmond should be looking to attract other types of households, before Martin Evison of Reform UK argued that a lighter touch approach may be the best solution.
2. How do you propose to reduce the level of anti-social behaviour in Jesmond?
Burns of the Lib Dems said that anti-social behaviour is a “serious problem”, citing that this type of crime has risen from 37% to 67%. She said that the problems are often caused by children and argued that “we need to be talking to schools.”
According to Moore (North East Party), not enough money has been spent on Operation Oak to solve the issue of anti-social behaviour, and cited HMOs as a contributory factor.
Taylor of the Greens spoke of his own experiences with the issue: “Every month or so I have to go out in my dressing gown and tell people to stop shouting in the street,” he said, adding that most students he has dealt with have been apologetic.
Tanya Pretswell of the Labour Party said work is being done to hold the universities and landlords more accountable. “Residents are at the end of their tether,” she said. “We need to bring students into our community and move away from the culture of them-and-us.”
3. Have bridge closures and other recent road changes in Jesmond been successful?
Reform UK candidate Evison said that “in the absence of a proper survey or consultation, it’s hard to know for sure,” before say that people’s perspective on the matter would depend on what type of road user they were.
Pretswell of Labour argued the changes have led to improvements, especially for pedestrians. In contrast, Scargill of the Conservatives argued that the bridge closures have increased congestion.
Taylor of the Greens said the closures were made to encourage cycling, and Moore (North East Party) stated his opinion that Haldane Bridge should remain open to cyclists and pedestrians only.
4. What are your plans to ease congestion in and around Jesmond especially around areas like West Jesmond primary school?
Moore (North East Party) said queues at drop-off times are “terrible”, and that a new drop-off zone should be agreed upon and created. Lib Dem candidate Burns agreed that the traffic around the schools was an issue, and proposed a public consultation on the idea of restricting traffic in the area.
Evison of Reform UK said the pedestrian crossings near the Metro tracks need improvement, which would, he said, help encourage more walking and cycling to school. Scargill (Conservatives) said the issue of traffic in West Jesmond is at the heart of his campaign and argued that there should be a new drop-off point and more investment in cycling for residents of the area.
Pretswell of Labour said that the real issue lies with central government, and legislative changes need to be made to address congestion problems and improve sustainability.
5. According to the House of Commons Climate Change Committee, there needs to be a reduction in surface transport emissions of 70% by 2035 to reach our climate targets. What action will you take in Jesmond to enable this reduction?
Taylor of the Greens argued that cycling must be prioritised, but to do this, better infrastructure within the city must be created to make it safer. Prestwell (Labour) agreed with Moore of the North East Party saying that improvements must be made to public transport in order to achieve these goals, “We must give people an alternative to cars.”
Burns (Lib Dems) said she was in favour of increased parking restrictions and widening pavements as a solution to help reduce car use, whilst Scargill (Conservatives) said that he would push for “more electric vehicle charging points”, increased food recycling, and encouragement of active travel when commuting in and around the city.
6. What do candidates think of the introduction of e-scooters to Jesmond?
Though Evison of Reform UK said that the e-scooters “look like great fun” he questioned their safety. Tom Appleby (Liberal Democrats) argued the e-scooters were “poorly thought out” and suggested that they are “inaccessible for some of our fellow neighbours”.
Charlie Gray of the Labour Party mentioned the scale of the climate crisis and suggested the scooters were one part of a “bigger conversation” about how we change our individual transport preferences. Gray also spoke about parking issues. Taylor (Green) agreed: “There needs to be designated areas where people can leave them.”
“I don’t think the council has learnt anything from Mobikes,” added Taylor, referencing the bicycle scheme that was suspended in Newcastle in 2019.
Moore of the North East Party said: “Let’s get some investment on cycle lanes” for both cyclists and e-scooter riders, while Scargill of the Conservatives proposed “no-riding zones” across Jesmond, so that the scooters “can still offer clean transport options but are no longer an issue for local residents”.
7. Jesmond is falling behind in electric car charging infrastructure. Will any candidates pledge to work to install more street-based chargers?
The Conservative and Liberal Democrat candidates said yes to the installation of more street-based chargers, while Moore for the North East Party said “Absolutely!”
Appleby (Lib Dems) gave his reason: “To make it as easy as possible for people to think about going green.” He said there was an opportunity for “killing two birds with one stone” and suggested the council explore charging points in street lamps to save pavement space and “make it readily accessible for anyone who parks in the surrounding area”.
The Labour candidates were more reticent about electric car charging infrastructure. Gray (Labour) said he agreed with the general principle of more charing points, but wanted to ensure “the technology is future-proofed” and said he sees “no point in sticking a load of charging points up that may in the near future not be the most appropriate for the needs of the community. We need to work to find solutions across the city, not just Jesmond.”
8. What would you do to help shops, restaurants and bars in Jesmond recover from the impact of the lockdowns of the last 12 months?
Burns of the Liberal Democrats said that a lot of small businesses within Jesmond without premises and working from home had not been receiving any financial support from local government. Gray of the Labour Party said that “passing the buck to councils isn’t fair” and said he believed support should come from central government.
Moore (North East Party) suggested the best way to help businesses is to “simply ask them” and formulate a relevant policy from there. Appleby (Lib Dems) added that the “shop local message” needs to be renewed, “The city centre received a £50 million grant that should’ve been given to local communities,” he argued.
Taylor (Green) said the council had helped businesses by giving permission for outdoor seating and mentioned that the government furlough and grant scheme had helped too. However he suggested that pedestrianisation of streets such as Acorn Road would help “to beautify the area”, increasing footfall and therefore business profits. Scargill of the Conservative Party agreed, adding that business rates need to be “as low as possible”.
9. The city council is having to do more with less: is council money being spent in the right places in Jesmond?
Appleby (Lib Dems) said council money is not being spent in the right places: “If you walk around Jesmond, you can see the basics are not being done anymore and it is having a negative effect on people’s lives.” Evison of Reform UK agreed. “If we look at the basic things such as keeping the roads mended and the bins emptied, then the council has failed to do that,” he said. “I do not accept the excuse that there is not enough funding. We need to improve the efficiency of the council. He also expressed anger concerning what he saw as the damage that “multiple lockdowns have done”.
The Labour and Liberal Democrat candidates were in agreement that some businesses haven’t received support due to them not having premises, both mentioning that these businesses have been “let down”.
Burns (Lib Dems) said: “We’re tired of hearing that there isn’t any money when we see headlines about £50m being spent on the city centre.” Gray (Labour) said: “We need to support the most vulnerable in our communities because they are the people who need the funds first and foremost.”
10. Is it right that councillors should be able to represent wards different to where they actually live?
Martin Evison of Reform UK said yes: “It’s important that there is a local connection.” Charlie Gray of Labour believes it is down to residents to “choose who is the best representative for them and the area.”
Moore of the North East Party stated “it doesn’t matter, all I want is the best councillor,” and followed with: “the reason why I am standing for Jesmond, is so that I can live in Jesmond if we can stop anti-social behaviour.” Tom Appleby (Lib Dems) agreed: “short answer is no it doesn’t matter.”
Scargill of the Conservatives said councillors living in the wards they represent “is definitely preferable” and described rubbish and anti-social behaviour as “real, local things that you can truly appreciate if you live in the same area.” Taylor (Greens) was in agreement: “Every day, just by living here, I am experiencing what all the other people in the ward are experiencing.”
Burns of the Liberal Democrats said she found this question of ward representation “a bit UKIP-y”, and suggested “living in the ward does not result in someone being a good candidate.”
At the end of the evening, one audience member commented: “My vote has been decided on the basis of this evening. Excellent hustings.” Another commented: “We moved here recently and this has helped us decide on who we want to vote for. We wouldn’t have attended a face to face event normally, this has been really convenient and easy.” Gerry Keating, a Lib Dem councillor in North Jesmond, praised the event too: “Having participated in the last five editions of these hustings, I have thoroughly enjoyed tonight and been impressed by everyone.”