A report from the hustings held in Brentford
Candidates for Brentford and Isleworth constituency went up against each other in the second hustings after last Tuesday's debate in Chiswick.
Over 150 people attended the event last Wednesday ( April 15) at St Paul's church, which was sponsored by Neighbour Net and Brentford Chamber of Commerce, along with support from Brentford Community Council.
The main contenders Mary Macleod (Conservative) and Ruth Cadbury (Labour) both said they would defy a three party whip and fight for change within the party if the decision to expand Heathrow went ahead.
UKIP's Richard Hendron thought it was a "done deal" and was heckled when he said he supported the expansion of Heathrow. The remaining two candidates, Joe Bourke (Liberal Democrats) and Daniel Goldmsith (Green) were clearcut in their opposition to expansion.
Other topics discussed were:
Child poverty - Marilyn Bater, Division Secretary of Hounslow NUT said that over 3.5 million children living in poverty was a disgrace. Teachers are bringing food into class to feed the childre, she said.
Joe Bourke said there was free school meals provision for years 1 and 2, and nursery provision of such meals had been expanded. Daniel Goldsmith of the Green Party said his party proposed a living wage of £10 per hour which would help reduce the figure of 1 in 4 children living in poverty. Richard Hendron ( UKIP) proposed some "simple suggestions" such as making savings in Child Protection Services, and having registers for emergency child care for each local authority.
Mary Macleod said her government had brought 3 million people out of paying tax and would continue to do more. Education was the way out and there were now more good and oustanding schools than ever before. Mary acknowledged Ruth's contribution to setting up the local foodbank and said they were a marvellous organisation. Ruth Cadbury blamed the need for the foodbank on government policies over the last five years and found Mary's words of support "unbelievable", stating that a foodbank hadn't been needed before 2010. Labour would bring the minimum wage up to £8 which would be paid by all public sector and its contractors, she said.
EU referendum - Mary Macleod said the it was only fair that people had a say on the European Union issue with a referendum. The debate would offer the opportunity to discuss the form of the EU and the changes needed and to fight for our sovereignty. Richard Hendron did not agree with "signing away our powers" and said "it's not acceptable that most of our laws are made in Brussels", which led to cries of "rubbish" from the audience. He also suggested that being in the EU stopped the UK from having trade agreements elsewhere.
Joe Bourke said he was old enough to vote in the 1975 referendum and was well aware that they were joining a political union. There was no reason to have a referendum now. Daniel Goldsmith said the Greens' belief in local decisions taken at local level led to some conflict and issues with the EU's "superstate". Ruth Cadbury said that David Cameron's alliances with the extreme far right fascist groups in Europe had deeply affected Britain's relationship with our partners in Europe. We need to get on with reforming the EU, she said.
Candidates were asked if they supported the campaign for a bill to combat 'tax dodging' and if they would promise to bring it to the House within 100 days?
Daniel Goldsmith said he'd been supporting the bill and had campaigned for it. Ruth Cadbury would support the bill and go for within 100 days. She asked why the Conservatives didn't just abolish non domicile status, to which Mary Macleod retorted that previous Labour governments left them alone too. Richard Hendron said if 'nondom' status was abolished, tax receipts would go down anyway, that it's currently fashionable to "have a go at rich people". Joe Bourke, as an accountant, went into some detail about the legislation brought in over the last decades to attempt to close down abusive tax avoidance, which, along with closing loopholes was 'vital', he believed.
Foreign Aid - UKIP propose to cut this from 0.7% to 0.2%
Richard Hendron suggested it was wrong to give away so much when we had people starving. British people should come first. The other four candidates were united in the opinion that foreign aid was the right and moral thing to do, with Mary and Ruth both talking about the need to target the money usefully for the longterm, citing getting girls in education and micro finance to start small businesses as examples. Daniel Goldsmith said (to applause) that poverty should be addressed both in the UK and across the world, that the Greens would raise the contribution to 1%. Ruth Cadbury added that many communities were dependant on remittances sent by family members working in the UK and some banks were refusing to process these.
Small businesses and high streets - Veronika Wesweiller, Federation of Small Business asked what help would be on offer.
Mary, Ruth and Joe all agreed that business rates needed cutting or relief provided for small firms, with Mary stating that she had "nagged" the Chancellor on this. Richard Hendron suggested a 30 minute free parking period or high streets, which the other candidates and audience pointed out was already in place in Hounslow, except for Chiswick High Road. Mary advocated the need for trader's groups. Ruth would continue to build business partnerships, criticising the permitted conversion of offices to homes. Daniel Goldsmith wanted improved public transport and cycle routes to help small local shops shape the heart of the community.
Housing - A question posed by Hazel Dakers ; "How much should a family of four have to earn to afford a home locally?" went unanswered.
Mary Macleod criticised Hounslow Council, saying they had only built 98 council homes since 2002, according to information received from a FOI. Ruth Cadbury laid the responsibility at the government's feet, saying the Conservatives proposed Right to Buy for housing association tenants but this did nothing to solve the crisis. The Greens would build more social housing. Joe Bourke said a massive building programme was needed. Richard Hendron said he couldn't afford to buy his own home.
April 17, 2015