South Ribble election hopefuls quizzed by voters and make their pitch to the public

Four out of the five candidates vying for the seat at next week’s general election were put through their paces in a two-hour debate, which ran the gamut of issues that the public said mattered most to them. 

>>> Click here to watch the full South Ribble election debate.

The hustings - organised by the Local Democracy Reporting Service, Lancashire Post, Lancashire Lead and Blog Preston – was staged at Penwortham Golf Club and saw local democracy reporter Paul Faulkner tee up a range of questions submitted in advance by audience members. 

The prospective parliamentarians were put under the microscope on subjects as diverse as the widening of one of the borough's busiest roads, providing affordable homes for young people, the effects of Brexit and guaranteeing single-sex spaces.  

Those in attendance at Thursday evening’s gathering also got the chance to probe the would-be MPs directly when on-the-spot questions were invited from the floor.   

Before the debate got under way, each of the candidates present was given the chance to make their 90-second pitch to the people of South Ribble – while the candidate who could not make it on the night had a statement read out on their behalf. 

This is what each of the election hopefuls had to say (in alphabetical order):

KATERINE FLETCHER (Conservative) 

‘I’ve brought a lot to the borough and have ideas for more’  

“I feel in South Ribble that I’ve got a track record of delivery for you. We've got a new, big, £2bn hospital. We've got one school rebuild done, we've £50m for Penwortham Girls [High School] to be redone, we've got £50m for Wellfield [Academy] to be redone. 

“In 2010, only 60-odd percent of the schools in South Ribble were good or outstanding - today, it's 92 percent.  We're investing in our children's futures, we're investing in our healthcare. 

“What we need to carry on doing is investing in the Northern Powerhouse that brought me to politics about 10 or 11 years ago, when I was sat on the sofa, shouting at the telly, and I thought, ‘Sod it, I'll stick my head above the parapet’ [and] see what I can do to deliver for us. 

“So what do we need more of? We need better trains, we need better buses, we need more jobs, we need more business investment [and] we need lower taxes that fuel it. We need to drive investment forward. 

“And so for South Ribble…I've got lots and lots of things for you - and I've got lots and lots...more ideas.”

PAUL FOSTER (Labour)

‘I’ve been your council leader and now I’m ready to serve as your MP’

“This country needs change. Since 2010, we've been through 10 years of austerity, where all our public services were really, really squeezed financially and none of them - none of them - are in a better state now.

“We were then hit with the pandemic - not the government's fault, but the pandemic exposed the significant weaknesses of our NHS and our NHS couldn't cope.

“We then had war in Europe - our armed forces might not be fighting that war, but [they] can’t support NATO as they should, because our armed forces, now, due to the cuts, are at the lowest levels since the Napoleonic Wars.    

“We need change. I'm not embarrassed to say to every single person here - we need to take a step back as a country and drive forward a new agenda, with stability, that makes Britain great again [and] puts the United back in Kingdom.  

“I served 15 years in the British Army for my country;   I've served as your [South Ribble] council leader for the last five.  I’m part of the community - I'm proud to be part of the community - and am more than ready to serve as your MP.

ANDY HUNTER (Reform UK)

‘We need common sense and lower taxes’

“I agree with Paul - we need to change.  We’re called the Reform party, but I think of us as the ‘common sense party’.  Who doesn't want to see the votes being stopped, which we can do right now?  Who knows who's coming into this country illegally and what their ultimate intentions are?

“And that's not the real elephant in the room - the real elephant in the room is legal immigration.  Net migration in 2023 of 685,000 people - that's like Manchester. What was it David Cameron said, in 2010 - we'll have it in the tens of thousands?  That doesn't add up.  

“We want good, patriotic education - and we want safe…single sex facilities.   And the police - we want them investigating burglaries and grooming gangs, not doing a Macarena.  

“We want people to want to work so they get more money in their pockets and not take any out to spend on virtue-signalling projects like HS2. We want to cut foreign aid and spend it here.   We want to encourage businesses by cutting corporation tax - and encourage investment into the country and into the area.”

STEPHANI MOK (Green Party) [sent apologies and a statement was read out on her behalf]

‘We would tax the wealthiest to help the most vulnerable’

“I volunteered to put myself forward in South Ribble, because the Green Party wishes everyone in England and Wales to have the opportunity to vote Green. I am a Green Party activist based in Stevenage, in Hertfordshire.

“For me, the Green Party stands for social justice and climate justice.   Elected Greens in Parliament would focus on quality housing, education and transport, transform our economy and overhaul the tax system to make it fairer. The Green Party would invest to protect the climate for future generations and bring nature back to life.

“In terms of the economy and financial support to the most vulnerable in society, Greens would introduce a wealth tax of one percent, annually, on people with assets over £10m and of two percent on those with assets over £1bn. We would align tax rates on investment income with employment income tax and remove the national insurance upper earnings limit so high earners pay more.

“We would increase the national minimum wage to £15 an hour and offset the cost to small businesses by reducing their national insurance payments. We would increase Universal Credit by £40 per week and abolish the two-child benefit cap, lifting 250,000 children out of poverty. We would set up regional mutual banks to support small and medium-sized businesses and drive investment in local economic sustainability.

Greens would invest £28bn in the NHS to reduce waiting lists, increase staff pay and guarantee access to an NHS dentist, as well as an additional £20bn on hospital buildings and repair. 

ANGE TURNER (Liberal Democrats)

‘I know local people’s problems - because I’ve lived here most of my life’

“I am the only local candidate who originates in the constituency, having grown up in Leyland, where I attended local schools. I then…gained a degree in business and finance from our local university, UCLan. I now live in Penwortham, where I am the local South Ribble Borough councillor. 

“My working life was spent in the aerospace industry, supplying goods and services to the Royal Air Forces across Europe - and, apart from a spell working abroad on a specific European collaborative project supporting NATO, I have lived in the constituency for most of my life.

“Having listened to residents on the doorstep in South Ribble, my campaign is formulated accordingly. At the heart of my campaign is tackling the crisis in social care and the NHS, boosting the economy and helping people with the cost of living, stopping the raw sewage-dumping scandal and protecting our environment. 

“And having lived here most of my life, I am acutely aware of the problems which affect the residents of South Ribble through lived experience.”