Having spent my early years in Gildersome, I have lived in Leeds for most of my life.

Full statement

I worked for the NHS and volunteer for two charities. More recently I have been involved with transport issues in the city.

A few years ago I felt that I could not vote for either the Labour or Conservative parties and discovered the existence of and then joined the Yorkshire Party. We want a stronger Yorkshire in a fairer United Kingdom with more decisions made in Yorkshire through a Yorkshire Regional Parliament along the lines of Scotland and Wales. Decisions made locally are usually better decisions. As well as devolution from Westminster to Yorkshire I support the existence of local parish and town councils and would like to see these strengthened.

Too often London and Scotland get the lion’s share of any resources available with Yorkshire taken for granted and overlooked. We are dependent for funds on hand-outs from Westminster government, the terms for which are dictated by London based ministers and civil servants. England has one of the most centralised systems of government in the world. We are being poorly served by a UK government which seeks to micromanage local decisions such as cycle lanes but fails to get to grips with the big national issues we face.

We are a centrist party which bases its policies on forward thinking and pragmatic decision-making. Have a look at our wider policies and manifesto on our website.

If you vote Labour things may be slightly better, they could hardly be worse than what we have had under the Conservatives, but is that the change we need? Real devolution to Yorkshire is needed to give us better transport, health and social care, tackle crime and the housing crisis, and provide Yorkshire with a growing economy. I am standing in this election to give you that alternative choice.