By Joe Locker and Jamie Waller, Local Democracy Reporters
The six candidates standing for the new position of Mayor for the East Midlands have shared their hopes, ambitions and priorities ahead of the upcoming election in May.
A devolution deal was signed by Derbyshire County Council, Nottinghamshire County Council, Derby City Council and Nottingham City Council in November 2022.
The deal will provide £1.14bn in funding, spread over 30 years, while some powers will be moved up from Westminster to the East Midlands.
These include transport, housing, skills and adult education, economic development and net zero strategy.
However, as a requirement of the deal, a new mayoral role must be created -similar in that to Andy Street in the West Midlands and Andy Burnham in Greater Manchester.
A new East Midlands Combined County Authority has also been established to cover the region as a whole – although existing city and county councils remain unchanged.
The Government believes a regional mayor will mean more accountability over local powers and money.
Election day for the mayor is May 2, when the electorate will get their chance to vote for the person they want to see represent the region.
The candidates are Frank Adlington-Stringer (Green Party), Ben Bradley (Conservatives), Alan Graves (Reform UK), Matt Relf (Independent), Helen Tamblyn-Saville (Liberal Democrats) and Claire Ward (Labour).
All six candidates have spoke to the Local Democracy Reporting Service to outline their ambitions and priories, as below in surname alphabetical order.
Frank Adlington-Stringer (Green Party)
Mr Adlington-Stringer was born in Chesterfield and is North East Derbyshire’s first-ever Green Party councillor.
The 26-year-old, who studied Politics and International Relations at Nottingham Trent University (NTU), said he hopes to bring a “culture of listening” to the role if successfully elected.
His main priorities are starting a green industrial revolution, as well as seeking what he says are “reparations” for historic underfunding of the East Midlands region, particularly in transport.
“That means totally overhauling our transport system and I’m the only candidate that is going to bring the buses into public control from day one,” he said.
“It is making sure any housing we build is sustainable and affordable. It is making sure our manufacturers can transition and get ready for the future from good, green grants.
“It is making sure our landlords are signed up to a decent landlord charter.
“I want to provide public toilets and fountains, that is a small thing that I am really passionate about because I think it helps boost our high streets and tourism while making sure everyone has access to basic facilities.
“Digital connectivity as well, so making sure not only people in rural areas but in our cities as well are able to connect to the internet without hassle and are able to connect to work and education opportunities.
“I have said I will go to the Government, go to whoever is the chancellor and demand reparations for austerity because we have been the least-funded region and we deserve to have our fair share and we haven’t.
“This devolution deal barely scratches the surface of the cash we haven’t had over the last decade.
“It is a good start, but we need to make sure Government gives us enough to invest properly in our communities because just repairing potholes is not enough.”
Ben Bradley (Conservative Party)
Mr Bradley, born in Derby, is the current leader of Conservative-run Nottinghamshire County Council and the Conservative MP for Mansfield.
He graduated with a degree in Politics from Nottingham Trent University in 2013, before beginning his political career as campaign manager for Sherwood MP Mark Spencer.
In 2015, he was elected as a district councillor in Hucknall.
Mr Bradley says he would resign as county council leader and not run again for his MP position in the upcoming General Election if elected as mayor.
Speaking of his priorities he said: “I would invest heavily in our roads – not just repairs but major resurfacing works – and improve our transport infrastructure, filling in the gaps in the bus network.
“We also need to bring major business investment into our areas, whether it’s jobs and training or high street regeneration.
“I am the most experienced of the candidates, working in transport and major economic development.
“I helped build the devolution plans, so I know the opportunities and how to make it deliver for the area.
“I’m also the only candidate who has strong connections across every part of the area, which is vital if you’re devolving powers from London.”
Alan Graves (Reform UK)
Mr Graves was first elected as a Labour councillor in 2002, before later becoming an independent, UKIP and Brexit Party representative.
He became a Reform UK councillor in 2020, and was elected mayor of Derby in May 2023 by a single vote as the party’s first mayor.
The party is the re-branded Brexit Party and is today led by Richard Tice.
Mr Graves has but one priority: To abolish the position of East Midlands mayor.
He said: “My single priority would be to abolish the East Midlands mayor position and the Combined County Authority because it is costing taxpayers a huge amount over many, many years.
“Only a fraction of the 2.2 million people in the counties said they wanted this. I would spend quite a bit of time trying to undo the legislation that created this and take us back to where we were.
“I would like to see the money used on a local level to make people’s lives better, easier and safer. However, it’s a shame that this money would be spent by a single person rather than the government, making it a dictatorship rather than a democracy.”
Matt Relf (Independent)
Mr Relf has held elected office on Ashfield District Council for almost five years.
He is the cabinet member responsible for economic regeneration and was heavily involved in the council’s £62.6m Towns Fund bid.
Last year he was voted by both Conservative and Labour council leaders to represent the county’s district and borough councils on the D2N2 local enterprise board.
He also sits on the all-council Nottinghamshire Economic Prosperity Committee, which is noted for having guided devolution plans, and is the leader of the Independent group at East Midlands Councils.
Outside of politics, he has worked in IT since 2009 on projects including developing ticketing systems for Heathrow Express, Gatwick Express, Stansted Express and the A1 Grand Prix Race Series.
He has family in both Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire.
“My main priority would be transport,” he said. “I would fix the roads, overhaul public transport and introduce integrated ticketing and timetables.
“We need to bring it up to the standard of the rest of the UK. There’s also a lot to do around housing, building better quality homes, greener homes and the right homes for a changing population rather than what’s profitable for developers.
“As the Independent candidate, I would be the only one not having party leaders in London whispering in my ear.
“I have the necessary skillset, having worked in all of the areas the mayor would oversee, and have been extremely successful in bringing regeneration money to my area.”
Helen Tamblyn-Saville (Liberal Democrats)
Mrs Tamblyn-Saville grew up in London before moving to Retford, Bassetlaw, in 2017.
She rescued a children’s book shop in the town centre from closure, which she hopes to transform into a family hub.
She also stood in the 2019 General Election in Bassetlaw and works as a district councillor for Retford West.
“Liberal Democrats believe in change from grassroots up, not the top down,” she said.
“As mayor, I would work collaboratively with councils and communities to find solutions, rather than grandstanding from the top.
“My priorities include improved transport links with simplified ticketing. Work also needs to be done to ensure that our public transport network is truly accessible to everyone in the region, including improved east to west connectivity. This will encourage business investment in the region.
“We need affordable housing, and much needed social housing to be built, and these homes should be built to a high standard. Brownfield land is important in achieving this, and new homes should be built to Passivhaus standards to help meet net zero goals. Green retrofitting of existing homes should begin immediately, using local installers, keeping revenues generated within the local economy.
“High streets are struggling. The mayor should not be prescribing a one size fits all approach to each town but should work collaboratively with local areas to find the solutions. Every village, town, and city is different, and where better transport and housing will help, local authorities are best placed to come up with city and town centre strategies.
“No major decisions should be made in the region without considering the environmental impact. This is why on day one in office, I would declare a climate emergency, launching a climate and sustainability forum.”
Claire Ward (Labour Party)
Ms Ward was first elected as MP for Watford at the age of 24 in 1997, having stood as mayor of Elstree and Borehamwood in Hertfordshire.
After losing her seat in 2010, she moved to Nottinghamshire and later became a Non-Executive Director of Sherwood Forest Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust in 2013 and was appointed chairwoman in October 2021.
“This is a big job. There are six key priorities for me,” she says.
These are getting a grip on roads, buses and trains, supporting the local economy and high streets, building homes, launching a Visit East Midlands campaign, delivering jobs and skills and working towards a green transition.
“I certainly want to get a grip of our roads, our buses and our trains. That means getting quality road resurfacing, but also holding the councils to account for fixing them,” she added.
“I want to make sure we work with the bus companies initially to see if we can get those services and routes that are needed across our communities.
“I am really clear though that if we don’t get those agreements working for the benefit of the public we will then move to franchising models.
“I want to see integrated ticketing. Tap and go. We need affordable fares and more active travel.
“I want to set up a community development fund to support community-led initiatives to helping revitalise the local high streets and giving some control back.
“I want a free skills audit linked to NHS health checks to make sure people are not just fit for work but also have the skills they need.
“I want to launch a visit East Midlands campaign to put the region on the map.
“We need new accommodation to be able to make sure we have got the space for all these new visitors.
“We want a greener East Midlands. I want a mayor’s taskforce around nature and biodiversity. The expertise is out there in our region, I want to bring it in to help us with that policy-making.
“The other is building the homes we need. Building affordable homes, making sure they are energy efficient.”
Ms Ward also said she wanted to set up a youth panel involving young people in decision-making, alongside citizen assemblies and questioning panels for the public.
