Parties make final plea for YOUR vote ahead of Peterborough City Council elections

Tomorrow (Thursday) voters go to the polls to elect 20 city councillors in Peterborough, as well as parish councillors in Bretton.
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A third of the city council is up for re-election with the Conservatives looking to keep hold of their majority.

The current make-up of the council is:

. Conservative 31 (seats)

Last year's local election countLast year's local election count
Last year's local election count

. Labour 14

. Liberal Democrat 7

. Liberal Party 1

. Werrington First 3

. UKIP 1

. Green 1.

Two seats are currently vacant.

The Peterborough Telegraph offered the parties putting up multiple candidates the chance to submit 250 words giving their ‘final word’ as to why you should vote for them.

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Candidates putting up a single candidate, and the sole independent, were also offered 80 words on the same theme.

Below are the submissions:

Shaz Nawaz - leader of the council’s Labour group

On election day, we, the voters, are uniquely powerful. We will decide if we want things to continue as they are, or if we want something better.

It is easy to see oneself as powerless; so many promises made since the Conservative Administration have come to power have collapsed like dominoes: our city isn’t cleaner, our schools are still languishing at the bottom of the league tables, all too often crime disrupts the peace of our communities. Promises like “building the UK’s environmental capital” dissolve in daily traffic jams.

It’s understandable that trust in politics is at an all-time low: on both a national and local level, the Conservatives have forfeited it. Worse, they have been running our city for 18 years. Faced with such an immovable administration, it’s understandable if one wants to cast a protest vote; we are all frustrated, but that emotion has its root in the sense that it shouldn’t be this way. Thus, it’s far better if we cast our ballots for positive change.

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Labour has put forward imaginative, ambitious and fully costed proposals on everything from addressing the housing crisis, to building the local economy, to increasing attainment at our local schools. It is not only possible for there to be a better Peterborough; we have mapped out the way.

On May 2nd, I urge my fellow Peterborians to vote Labour and put our city on the path to a better future.

John Holdich - Conservative leader of the council

This Thursday the polls will open and it’s your chance to choose the person who will represent you on your local council.

The councillors you choose will be responsible for key decisions on how to spend the money we receive and your Conservative councillors have a long and proud record: 

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We fund our children’s schools - 93% of them are good or outstanding.

We care for hundreds of adults and children who need support.

We have built 9,000 houses over the last 10 years and provided solutions to the rise in homelessness and rough sleepers.

We continue to deal with waste and rubbish, tackle issues around public health, mend roads, provide a broad range of recreational activities and look after our beautiful open spaces.

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These responsibilities need to be led by competent councillors who understand the needs and problems of our city and have Peterborough at the heart of their decisions. 

But the failure of all parties to lead us out of the EU is affecting us all. We know there’s a sense of frustration, with a few residents saying they are so fed up they will stay at home or register a protest vote. More than ever we need to make sure the best people are in place to make sure the council delivers the best service to yourselves and to the City of Peterborough. Conservative councillors have proven they can be trusted to deliver, even in times of financial austerity  Please vote on May 2nd and vote Conservative.

Julie Howell - Green Party city councillor

These are unprecedented times. Twelve months ago the voters of Orton Waterville were the first to choose a Green Party candidate to represent them on Peterborough City Council. One tumultuous year later, interest in the Greens is at a level the local party has not experienced before.

This is due in part to disillusionment with the two main parties. But where Greens are active at a local level voters are quick to tell us that they will be voting Green because of the hard work we do for our communities all year round. Our work ethic will restore faith in local politics as people have clearly had enough of the posturing and petty arguing they’ve witnessed at council meetings.

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They are done with politicians who only show their faces when they want something. And they are thoroughly fed up with political leaflets that boast of councillors’ personal achievements but fail to communicate matters of local interest where residents might become actively involved in influencing outcomes.

For an increasing number of people, the Greens are delivering what they want in a way that is new, refreshing and very welcome. Green councillors are passionate about communities and protecting our beautiful and historic city for future generations. We are not told what to do by our party so we are free to do what our voters want. If what we say strikes a chord with you and your family, please vote for a Green councillor today.

Nick Sandford - leader of the council’s Liberal Democrat group

These elections are about what kind of council we want for Peterborough. When climate change is the number one global issue, do we want a council which threatens children protesting about it with fixed penalty notices? When our housing areas are littered with fly-tipping and plagued with graffiti and broken street lights, does our council really think that beautifying the city centre and spending £2.7 million on refurbishing the Town Hall should be seen as priorities?

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When education standards are not good enough should our council be refusing to publish information which shows where problems are arising?

When Conservatives have run Peterborough for nearly 20 years and all these things are still happening, do you really think they have done a good job?

The reality is the Conservatives are being torn apart by Brexit and Labour is in a state of confusion and denial. Our former Labour MP has just come out of prison and is on the brink of losing her job.

But on Thursday, forget national issues and think locally. Liberal Democrats want to do politics differently in Peterborough. We want to transform our council to make it more open, transparent and accountable to local people. That means scrapping the cabinet system that entrenches power in the hands of a tiny number of Tory councillors. It also means properly engaging with local communities and dealing with the issues that people really care about.

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Today it’s time for real change in Peterborough. It’s time for the Liberal Democrats!

John Whitby - UKIP city councillor

This week we elect councillors for the city council, the first of possibly three crucial elections in Peterborough. I’ve been out talking to residents and these elections are accompanied by feelings of both extreme anger and apathy. Many people have said that they no longer see the point of voting or won’t vote as a protest. I would say to them, that this is exactly the wrong thing to do.

This city, indeed this country, is being thoroughly let down by the major political parties and it needs change driven by your votes.

The Tories haven’t been the prudent party they claim to be, spending money we don’t have, compounded by a Conservative government that spends billions outside of the UK, but has taken huge cuts from funding for local councils that your taxes should provide.

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Peterborough will have halved its cash reserves and doubled it’s borrowing costs next year!! It will cover the hole in the budget by selling off community assets, assets YOU own, not the council, you, the people of Peterborough.

But if the Conservatives are bad, then Labour would be far, far worse as the administration. Their budget proposals, when they bother to get involved, are spending more money! In this the Lib Dems are the same.

So, make a statement, Vote for UKIP. Get away from the playground politics that are prevalent in the council chamber (and Westminster!), send a clear message, force change and get common sense policies for the city and its people.

Judy Fox - Werrington First candidate for Werrington

I am cheered by the public’s mood, in that ordinary people are now engaging with government on national issues, as well as with our council in this local election.

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We all demand to be heard, and in support of that cause I will stay true to the great people of Werrington. I don’t have all the answers, but with their strength and support I will continue to learn every day and carry that voice to the council chamber.

Mary Herdman – SDP Candidate for Eye, Thorney and Newborough

Eye, Thorney and Newborough, are the forgotten parts of Peterborough Road maintenance, bus services and repairs to historic buildings, plus sporting facilities, are all neglected, while Peterborough gets all the attention. Our city council needs to remember that the countryside and its villages are the breadbasket of England, they’re the beating heart of Britain and councils neglect them at their peril. Vote for me on 2nd May and I will make sure that we get the funding that we deserve.

Alex Savage, Veterans’ and People’s Party candidate in Dogsthorpe

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While this is a local election, it is as important, if not more so than a national one. You have the chance to let the city council know your feelings and elect a councillor to listen and take action on your behalf.

It may be brown bin collections, parking or anti-social behaviour concerning you. Make a change now, vote for the Veterans’ And People’s Party, the party that uses HONEST as its slogan. Give ME that chance! VOTE ALEX SAVAGE.

Jack Penny, Our Nation candidate in Fletton & Woodston

The reason why people should vote for me is because of my passion for the community I’ve lived in my entire life. Also at 18 I intend to bring some energy and passion back to a council that has become slow and ineffective.

People need real solutions and passion to help there communities and that’s what I intend to do. I’ll always have the residents in mind and not just at election time.

Colin Hargreaves, independent candidate in Dogsthorpe

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Should 100% of people be lumbered with a choice made by 14.69%. Is that fair? Only 14.69% of total available votes elected more mainstream party politics before people in Dogsthorpe and Welland 2018.

Mainstream supporters will vote, they always vote. If we stick together, make the effort and vote to prioritise our local community over posturing, we can get back to treating each other with respect and properly addressing identified issues. Put people before politics. Please make time to vote.