If you wish to submit a question to be asked at the hustings, please use our Contact Form (for a question to be asked on the night you will need to be present). We may merge similar questions since there is only limited time at the event. If any questions are not answered at the event we will endeavour to get answers from the candidates by email.

We have pre-submitted the following questions to the candidates who are attending.

Education: How ambitious are you for Whitby’s children? What is your vision for improving education and training for children and young people? Would you support and advocate for  updating and future proofing education and training provision, through the development of a new school on a single site, addressing the needs of all 11-18 year olds? A site that could become an education and training hub, where much needed vocational training could also be offered. Many of us believe that after years of short term thinking we need to be ambitious for our children and young people, and for the future of the town itself. Whitby’s children and young people need a new school,  a modern learning and training centre, fit for purpose. The current Caedmon sixth form site offers the space and potential for a new school, funded in whole or in part by using the capital receipts generated from the sale of the two other secondary school sites.

Housing: The boom in mainly holiday homes in Whitby has resulted in over 38% of our housing stock being lost, and we are now seeing commercial properties similarly been converted, decimating the local community, with the inevitable loss in local services eg, education & skills training, public transport and employee availability. What do candidates propose to do to ensure primary homes are available to local residents and key workers in Whitby & District, in an area with limited development land (surrounded by a National Park and the sea), that are truly affordable in-perpetuity, accessible, and energy efficient?

Transport: Whitby district has probably the worst rail line in the country with just 5 slow trains per day, and has a decimated unreliable bus service that does not reach many places. Cycling levels are amongst the lowest in the county due to lack of infrastructure, and footpaths are poorly maintained and many not accessible to all. The end result of this is that people are utterly dependent on vehicles, whilst the current parking strategy for Whitby is not fit for purpose, resulting in gridlocked streets for many months of the year. What would you do for transport in Whitby and District to improve the situation?

NYMNP (area of Whitby & District not included): Would you, as Mayor, actively support the extension of the North York Moors National Park boundary to include Whitby town, Sleights and Sandsend?

Disability & Accessible Transport: The City of York council employs an Access & Inclusion officer to ensure that the needs of its disabled residents are considered in all of its policies and services. It has also adopted the Social Model of Disability. 25% of York’s taxis already are wheelchair accessible and recently their council has introduced a financial incentive to increase that number. In contrast North Yorkshire Council has only 6% of its taxi fleet as accessible; no Access & Inclusion officer; has not adopted the Social Model of Disability and its new 5-year Taxi & Private Hire Policy does not require any increase in the number of wheelchair taxis. As Mayor, how will you make sure that the wheelchair-using residents of North Yorkshire have the same ability to book a taxi, as the residents of York can do now ?