On the 3rd of December, we hosted a husting that we live-streamed via Facebook. We’ve posted video footage from our secondary camera and the time codes below will enable you to jump straight to the questions that you want to hear about.
The panel, left to right are,
- Tom Adamson – Green Party
- Sir Bill Cash – Conservative Party and Current Stone MP
- Jon Cook – A Little Bit of Stone
- Alec Sandiford – Liberal Democrats
- Mike Stubbs – Labour Party
Candidates were seated alphabetically by surname.
0:00 – Introductions
1:03 – Opening Statements
8:40 – Q1. Brexit has been an incredibly divisive process, one that’s split families and friends. In a representative democracy how do you propose to honour the opinions of those on both sides of the debate?
12:46 – Q2. With a choice between remaining, leaving the EU with a deal and a no deal Brexit:
- 1. Which do you personally believe will be best for UK citizens and why?
- 2. Which do you see as being most hurtful and why?
17:23 – Q3. Could you explain how leaving the EU “gets Brexit done”? Is it realistic to conclude and pass a trade agreement in a third of the time that it’s taken to merely agree the withdrawal agreement? There is then the need to re-negotiate all existing deals that we had as a member of the EU and then look to create new deals.
21:50 – Q4. In your opinion why haven’t we already left the EU already?
25:37 – Q5. Having lost A&E facilities in Stafford how can we ensure that the next Government invests in the hospitals that serve the Stone Constituency?
30:08 – Q6. Nye from Stone asks ” The UN Secretary General has said that the climate crisis is imminent and political leaders have to respond. What would you, as MP for Stone, do to put pressure on the UK Government to act with the urgency the situation demands”
34:53 – Q7. Matt from Stone asks “Does your party have plans to improve the public transport provision within Stone, the reduction in local bus services and the current very poor train service are causing a lot of headaches for those who rely on them.”
39:33 – Q8. Rob from Chebsey asks “Given your track records how can the general public trust your party to deliver your manifesto promises?”
43:57 – Q9. Sue from Stone asks “Does your party plan to make taxation changes that will directly affect the constituents in Stone?”
48:29 – Q10. Daniel from Yarnfield asks “To truly benefit your constituents, how important is it to live within the constituency”
52:43 – Q11. Russell from Stone asks “What top 3 commitments will each candidate make to deliver for the local area over course of the next 3 to 6 months, if their party wins the election?”
57:03 – Q12. Graeme asks “The roads around Stone, including the A34, no longer seem fit for purpose with the volume of traffic they are required to handle., this is particularly bad when the M6 is closed due to accidents or the smart motorways upgrades. With the ever expanding town what will you do to ensure that the infrastructure is invested in to create a safe and less congested road network?”
1:01:49 – Q13. Clare from Stone says “Getting a doctors appointment these days in a complete nightmare, what will you and your party do to improve local healthcare facilities?”
1:06:16 – Q14. Margaret from Stone asks “Where does each candidate stand on restitution for the many thousands of women born in the 50s who have lost thousands of pounds because they can’t get their pension until age 66 or 67, and hadn’t enough time to plan for this?”
1:10:55 – Q15. Andrew from Stone asks: “HS2 will cause significant disruption in Stone and wider constituency, particularly by putting the rail hub outside Stone at Yarnfield. What will you do about HS2 and how as our Stone MP can you leverage your influence to stop it coming to Stone?”
1:15:07 – Q16. Eleanor from Stone asks: “What are the candidates views on the document released regarding talks about the NHS and US deals regarding medication patents and the long term costs to the NHS?”
1:19:07 – Q17. Ian from Tittensor asks: “What will your party to do to re-introduce local policing throughout the UK? Police Stations are closing and over 20 thousand police officers have disappeared from the streets in the last decade.”
1:23:25 – Q18. Patrick asks “Informed choice in a democracy requires openness and truth. Do you condemn bogus fact checking sites, doctoring videos, simulated manifesto sites and the delay to Parliamentary reports on Russian inference in our elections?”
1:27:50 – Q19. Dave from Moddershall asks “What can be done to bring more money to local councils to improve the services that they provide?” *We forgot to ask Tom for his response but went back and he answered at 1:34:19
1:30:38 – Q20. Tracey from Stone asks “The badger cull has not been effective in reducing bovine TB, in fact scientists have concluded that it spreads TB to other areas, as badgers move away from a cull zone. What is your opinion of the badger cull and does your party commit to stopping it.”
1:35:30 – Closing Statement
If you want to watch the entire video it’s below:
