Your Epping Forest candidates for the 2019 general election

Reminder: The General Election will take place on Thursday, December 12.

Here are your parliamentary candidates for Epping Forest:

Dame Eleanor Laing - Conservative

I would like to thank the people of Epping Forest for choosing me to serve as their MP for the last 22 years.

I have met and talked to hundreds of local people who tell me about the future they want for their families and for our local community.

Right now, the main thing that people tell me is that they want to get Brexit done so that we can get on with the priorities we all share. I agree.

• We will continue to spend more money than ever on the NHS, on doctors and nurses, and on a brand new local hospital to replace Princess Alexandra.

• People need to feel safe in their own neighbourhood so we will put many more police officers on our streets to cut crime.

• There is nothing more important that our children’s future. We have excellent local schools and every one of them will get more money and more resources.

• We are in a great position here between London and the Essex countryside but to make the most of it we need to build more homes that our young people can afford to live in.

• But we have to plan carefully. Our determination to protect the green belt and our precious Forest is a vital part of the national plan to combat climate change.

• Small businesses are the engine of our economy. We will support them with better technology and better infrastructure.

I voted “Leave” in 2016. It is simply wrong to ignore the result of the Referendum. So let’s back Boris, get Brexit done and grasp this opportunity for a brighter future for everyone.

Labour – Vicky Ashworth Te Velde

A mother, community champion, sports coach and an elected councillor, Vicky Ashworth Te Velde hopes to become the Labour MP for Epping Forest. She is a Cabinet member and is responsible for community cohesion in Waltham Forest.

Ms Ashworth Te Velde said she works tirelessly to ensure that the concerns of the community are heard, represented and dealt with, to make sure that politics works better for everyone.

She said: “I am striving for a society that values safety, education and climate change above all else, to ensure a sustainable future for everyone.

“Right wing Conservative politics is not working. It has brought our country into chaos and divided our friends and families”.

“The community here in Epping Forest needs a representative who is accessible, who will put them first and represent them in Westminster.

“I want to reach out and meet as many of you as possible, between now and the election.

“Labour is the only party that can truly protect you and your children’s future, defend our NHS and secure the medical, childcare & library services you deserve”.

“A vote for me is a No to library closures, a No to building on the Green Belt, a No to privatising our NHS.

“I will fight for our local schools, more police and youth opportunities. I will demand local green jobs and I will deliver more doctors, nurses and free personal care for older people.”

Liberal Democrat – Jon Whitehouse

I am proud to have been chosen as Liberal Democrat candidate for the area where I was brought up and where local residents elected me to represent them on the council.

As a Liberal Democrat MP I will use my vote in Parliament to stop the Brexit mess, support real action to tackle the climate emergency and improve our public services.

I will be a strong local voice on behalf of my fellow Epping Forest residents.

Epping Forest is a fantastic place but for many people things aren’t working as they should.

Whether it’s patients waiting too long for their appointment, commuters whose lives are disrupted by Central Line delays or families struggling to balance their budget, our area has its fair share of challenges.

The Liberal Democrats will put a penny in the pound on income tax to support the NHS and social care.

We will boost mental health spending to achieve parity with physical health. Children wait far too long for support, as I know from my school governor experience.

As a councillor, I have been at the forefront of challenging bad policies in the Conservatives’ controversial local development plan.

With residents I’ve successfully campaigned to keep a sports centre in Epping. I spoke at the local plan hearing about the impact of new development in the wrong locations and the need for adequate infrastructure.

The Conservatives relaxed Green Belt planning laws. As an MP I would fight to protect our environment. The Liberal Democrats will scrap the business rate system which makes life so difficult for our high street businesses.

The Lib Dems were second in Epping Forest district in the European and local elections earlier this year. With the support of local people, I will work hard to build a brighter future for all.

Green Party - Steven Neville

If Greens win we will have a People’s Vote on the current deal, and abide by the result. In that campaign Green’s will campaign for remaining as we think the best deal we have is in the EU. However if people want the current deal on exiting the EU then that will be the end of it.

As Greens we believe climate change is the single biggest challenge of our day and we need to take urgent action.

The more people who think this a pressing issue should vote Green which will send a powerful message to political leaders across the spectrum.

The more votes we get will mean keeping the issue high on the agenda. Otherwise it may slip down the political agenda.

Greens would really start to invest in our services. As a Councillor I have witnessed the cutbacks to infrastructure.

Our roads and pavements are in an appalling state. Our bus services have been cut back, libraries under threat and children’s centres closed.

These are issues that concern many residents have expressed to me. The last nine years have seen the axe go to many of our services and infrastructure and we would start to put that right.

I would be an independent MP for the area. I would raise issues, vote and speak on behalf of my residents in the House of Commons. This has been sorely lacking the last few years.

Young People’s Party (YPP) – Thomas Hall

I'm Thomas Hall, Buckhurst Hill resident and married father of two young children. I work with technology start-ups in London.

The Young People's Party stands to permanently fix the housing crisis and increase the disposable income of the 99 per cent.

Our sole aim is to shift the tax burden away from damaging taxes on wages and trade, towards rental values derived from natural resources and the provision of public services.

Today, workers pay both the income and sales taxes that support land values, and then the value of the land again to landlords and banks in rent and mortgage payments.

This double payment has led to a massive transfer of wealth to those that own land, at a cost of collapsing home-ownership for the young, increased financial insecurity for millions, and falling international competitiveness.

Formerly undeveloped countries such as Singapore and Hong Kong that have minimised taxes on production, instead raising government revenue from the increases in land prices have witnessed extraordinary progress, and the standards of living have in a single generation overtaken the developed world.

A vote for YPP is a vote for significantly reducing house prices, while giving most families thousands more pounds a year in disposable income, giving people more choice in how they live their lives and the opportunity to build up financial prosperity and security.

The Young People's Party believe the result of the EU referendum must be honoured, even though as a single-issue party we did not campaign on either side.

Our 2019 mini-manifesto can be found at www.yppuk.org/p/aims-and-mini-manifesto.html

Social Democrat Party (SDP) – Jon Newman

Fed up with the two party ding-dong? Fed up with constant arguments about Brexit? Fed up with incompetence and unrealistic promises by governments?

This election offers a genuine choice of an alternative.

The Social Democratic Party is not in the pocket of any vested interests, whether of capital or labour.

We do not support the free market excesses of the Conservatives, the hard Left dogma of the Labour Party, or the illiberal and undemocratic approach of the so-called Liberal Democrats.

We believe in:

• Honouring the result of the 2016 referendum.

• Reform of the voting system.

• Sustainable funding of our public services to avoid both wild overspending and austerity.

• Solidarity with foreign democrats but no open-ended military interventions.

• Support for the nation state.

• A needs-based, skills-based immigration system subject to democratic control.

• Giving businesses incentives to develop new environmentally friendly technologies.

• Commitment to the highest standards of animal welfare.

• Staunch support for freedom of thought and speech.

• Responsible use of welfare to enhance mutuality.

• Strengthening the common bonds of society.

• A more equal and tolerant society.

• Sound government finance.

• Support for family life.

• Support for the market economy and a strengthened public sector.