We asked each of the candidates for 300 words – here is what they had to say…
Lorna Corke – Christian Peoples Alliance Party
Lorna Corke has lived in Somerset for over 30 years. She served as a local Councillor in the County for 4 years from 2014. She was elected onto Local Government Association Think Tanks for Children & Young People & Education. She’s also been a member of the Axe & Brue Drainage Board. She’s had 4 children now aged over 30 and been a parent governor of a local school for 8 years. For 5 years she worked in a voluntary capacity for the Children Country Holiday Association for deprived children. She was involved in the holiday letting and long term letting industry for around 35 years. She still lets out 2 properties. She’s also been involved in sheep farming. She’s very concerned new houses should be built on brownfield sites and NOT farmland. Her platforms for this election are “We want moral Education” & “We will transform the economy”. Lorna Corke says. “Moral education is a major concern of mine. Education should be about teaching different moral points of view including that of Christianity. Today when it comes to RSE that has been abandoned and has become New Age liberalism only which is the promotion of LGBT and the sexualisation of young children. Many parents have complained some very vocally outside schools and reviews have been promised but to date nothing has been done. Sometimes children themselves are protesting about the teaching inside classrooms.” Again she says “CPA policy is for a turnover tax, 5% initially which is a sellers VAT. The idea is to get tax off Amazon, Microsoft, Facebook, Starbucks, Shell etc. who send profits abroad & so don’t pay corporation tax. We would use the anticipated £40.5bn raised to • Get rid of all Commercial rates on City Centres (£21bn) • Restore the cuts to benefits to get rid of the 5 week waiting period (£12bn) • Support marriage & the family with significant grants. (£3bn) • Guarantee people leaving prison a place to live & everyone sleeping rough a night shelter & free meal. (£4.5bn) She’s very involved in the community & deserves to represent you.
Martin Dimery – Green Party
The Somerton and Frome by-election will really put Frome in the national spotlight. Frome is the biggest town in the constituency, accounting for about a third of the population. For once, Frome is at the centre of political thinking. Too often in the past we have been “on the edge”. We are on the edge of Somerset, “the forgotten fourth town”. We were even on the edge of the old Mendip council, sidelined by Shepton. For too long we have also been stuck at the end of a long rural constituency called Somerton and Frome, almost tagged on as an afterthought. It may be for the above reasons that Frome has developed as a very independent, self-sufficient town, one of the first with a fully independent town council. In the top tiers of local government, Frome has defied the usual Tory or Lib Dem ding -dong and swung heavily towards the Green Party. John Clarke and I were delighted, in 2017, to be the first ever Green candidates elected to Somerset County Council. Last year, in the new unitary Somerset authority, the Green Party succeeded in taking four of the six Frome area seats. Perhaps more telling was the very last 2019 Mendip elections when a Green wave broke through the east of the district returning 10 Green councillors. The question is, can we also turn this enormous constituency Green? Not if you listen to the Lib Dems or Tories. But this is Frome. We do things differently here. We fight hard for our open spaces, our heritage streets and our amenities. We care about our local environment. I’ve lived in this town for forty years, arriving as a teacher at Frome College before working at the Cheese and Grain and directing fourteen Frome Festivals. I am the only candidate in the election from Frome. This election will not change the government, but it can bring Frome the representation that it has long deserved. If you were to choose the Green Party, Frome would make history. If you were to choose me, I would be honoured.
Sarah Dyke – Liberal Democrats Party
The last few years have been full of overwhelming challenges for all of us. Living here in Somerset, I’ve seen first-hand the devastating impact this government has had on families in rural areas like ours. Our communities have faced challenge after challenge, with no one to fight our corner in parliament. It is no wonder people here in Somerset feel so badly let down. It is no secret that our NHS is chronically underfunded. So many people I speak to are finding it almost impossible to get an appointment with their doctor. And services at our local hospitals are under real strain. The cost of living crisis is leaving people struggling. Energy, fuel and food prices are crippling household budgets. Homeowners are facing the terrifying prospect of their mortgage payments doubling, with no help from this Conservative government. Communities like ours have been sold out. I’m from a proud farming family, so I understand the importance of rural businesses to our local way of life. It’s sad to see so many local farmers betrayed by botched Conservative trade deals which have undermined them and put people’s livelihoods at risk. Our communities deserve more and I’m fed up with this Conservative government taking us for granted, aren’t you? For 18 years we had an exceptional Liberal Democrat MP in David Heath; he was a true local champion who went above and beyond for his constituents. I want to continue that remarkable legacy here in Somerset. We need an MP who understands our area. An MP who will work tirelessly to stand up for Somerset and be a passionate local champion to ensure our voice is heard here in Somerset and in Westminster – I promise that is what I will deliver. On Thursday 20th July, our communities finally have the opportunity to send a message and tell this Conservative government enough is enough. Only a vote for the Liberal Democrats can keep another Conservative MP out and bring about the change we deserve.
Bruce Evans – Reform UK Party
Bruce Evans a Somerton businessman, is standing for Reform UK with policies that will stimulate economic recovery, protect our freedoms and return our country to energy independence. Bruce is passionate about creating an environment in which small businesses in our area can thrive and grow, creating jobs so that everyone can be part of the economy and make Britain great. Here are Reform’s key policies: Lower Taxes and Economic Recovery: • Stimulate economic growth and reduce the cost of living by lowering taxes and simplifying the tax code to create a business friendly environment that creates jobs. These plans will be funded by cost savings from a leaner more efficient government. • Introduce a minimum taxable profit threshold of £100,000, exempting 1.2 million SMEs from Corporation Tax. • Raise the minimum personal tax threshold to £20,000, freeing 6 million people from Income Tax. • Lower VAT by 2%, fuel duty by 20p per litre and scrapping environmental levies. • Abolish business rates for SMEs and lower the main Corporation Tax rate. Protecting Our Freedoms: • Uphold freedom of speech and debate. • Safeguard rights and civil liberties. • Oppose a cashless society and central bank digital currency. Energy Independence and Cheaper Energy: • Utilise the UK’s vast coal, oil, natural gas, shale gas, and lithium resources to become energy independent. • Address the energy crisis through a detailed emergency plan that stabilizes prices and secures supply. • End the costly Net Zero plans that make our economy uncompetitive. Improved Public Services: • Implement a voucher scheme to provide timely healthcare treatment and eliminate waiting lists. • Provide better technology in schools. • Keep Critical Race Theory and gender ideology out the classroom. Secure Borders: • Protect our borders and end illegal immigration. • Welcome skilled individuals who meet our requirements and respect our values. • Reform UK offers real solutions to fix our broken systems. Unlike other parties, Reform UK provides fully costed policies to address the challenges facing Britain. Vote Reform UK to build a better Britain. Together, we can make Britain great.
Neil Guild – Labour Party
Somerton and Frome deserves an MP that will prioritise you and work to empower local communities. I was born and raised in Somerset. For me there was never any doubt that, after serving six years in the Army, my wife and I would make our home and raise our family here. I have applied the principles of cooperation, accountability and focusing on results whether as a soldier in Iraq, a civil engineer in Somerset or as a Trade Union official. These principles are why I joined the Labour Party and why I am now standing to be Somerton and Frome’s first Labour MP. My wife and I were lucky; we bought our first home in the 2000s. This year, the average mortgage in Somerton and Frome will increase by £3,400. So many people are doing all the right things – they saved for a home, paid for a home, they go out to work every day and it’s still not enough. The Government’s measures are just “sticking plaster politics”. Labour would make support for mortgage holders mandatory and require banks to pass on interest rate increases to savers; stopping banks from profiting from the cost of living crisis. I’m shocked that hospitals in Somerset are missing their two-week cancer referral targets almost 50% of the time. That’s why I have already launched a petition calling for current wait times to be cut. Last winter’s energy crisis disproportionately affected rural communities due to old housing and poor insulation. Labour’s Green Prosperity Plan will cut bills, create 1 million jobs and provide energy security. We’ll save UK businesses £53 billion off energy bills by 2030 – protecting our high streets. While Labour offers fully costed, achievable plans, the Tories offer “sticking plaster” politics. The Tories are out of ideas and out of time. On Thursday 20 July you will elect your new MP. Only Labour can deliver our pledges in government. That’s why I’m asking you to vote for me and vote Labour on 20 July. Together we can Build a Better Britain.
Rosie Mitchell – Independent Socialist
I’m Rosie, your independent candidate for Somerton and Frome, a conductor on the railway and RMT member. I moved to Frome in 2015 but grew up just a few miles down the road. I fought, like so many others against David Warburton in both 2017 and 2019, standing for council in 2019 with an amazing team. Today’s party politics have left so many of us feeling disenfranchised, politically homeless and without that hope and excitement we had in the past. That feeling seems to be across the board when I speak to people day to day about our government and politicians in general. Somerton and Frome is geographically a large constituency, predominantly rural with a few larger communities. Frome itself has shown an appetite for doing things a little differently within politics and has embraced a move away from traditional and limiting “party politics”. As an independent candidate I’m not hiding where my personal values lie, but I want to be very clear that I won’t be constrained to tow any party line. Leaving me free to listen to your concerns, opinions and needs as my prospective constituents. Policy wise we are focussing on the biggest issues of the day; the cost of living crisis and the undermining of public services. I will be working towards reform and reinvestment in our struggling NHS, fairer housing so people can live here comfortably, better transport links for our communities so people can access employment and essential services and the environment, cleaning up our rivers as a priority. I am committed to promoting equality at every level and a fairer, less profit driven system that works for society and for the planet. We do not need to understand every nuance of each other’s identities to have respect, compassion, and kindness towards one another. Likewise, our respect for the environment, our countryside and the liveable future of this planet need to be paramount in all decisions we make going forward.
Faye Purbrick -Conservative party
On 20th July, people across Somerton and Frome have a choice. Vote for a Conservative MP who will be their strong voice in Westminster, get the ear of government ministers, and champion the needs and ambitions of our communities. Or any other candidate who can only shout from the side lines, not deliver on your priorities. I’ve been a Somerset Councillor for six years, standing up for communities in my roles heading up education and transformation of the council. I’ve secured extra funding for our children’s education and will keep pushing for more. I led on the new King Ina school in Somerton and explored solutions for Berkley School outside Frome. I developed the plans for communities to have more say in the services they need. As your local MP, I will stand up for things important to our communities – like better buses and roads – building on the dualling of the A303. I’ll champion our farmers, so we can focus on creating great food and produce. Cutting crime, working with the police and the extra 558 new officers in Avon and Somerset so we can feel safe in our neighbourhoods, stop the spate of rural theft, anti-social behaviour and drugs that are blighting people’s lives from our smallest hamlets to Langport, Somerton, Wincanton and Frome. I’m ambitious and want to see our businesses grow, and thrive and the skills and training available to support their needs. We need homes for local people and I’ll talk to communities, liaise with developers and explore new solutions so that our young people can aspire to own their own homes and those later in life can find the homes that suit their needs. We need joined up thinking and planning for our NHS, like the Prime Minister’s new workforce plan. I grew up in Yeovil, had my first proper job in Somerton and I am passionate about our amazing part of Somerset. I have a track record of getting results, both in business and in politics, and I will use my skills to ensure our government is hearing what you want and need.
Peter Richardson – UK Independence Party
Dear residents of Frome and surrounding areas, after fourteen months of little to no representation, I am the candidate that will ensure your issues and worries will be heard in Westminster. I am Peter Richardson the UK Independence Party candidate, a military veteran, a parish councillor and a local person who understands your local issues. I loyally served my country for forty years and I now wish to serve the residents of Somerton and Frome with the same loyalty and integrity and I will put the local community at the heart of my programme. I will give you five good reasons to vote for the UK Independence Party: Cost of living: Other parties are obsessed with Net Zero and conspire to make you poorer. Net Zero increase energy costs for families and fuels inflation. We will end this madness, repeal all climate legislation and exit all treaties that increase the cost of living for the forgotten majority. Small and Medium Businesses: We are the party of the smaller businesses and sole traders. We will help them improve their cash flow by keeping more of what they earn. We will scrap the green taxes that make business uncompetitive. We want a low energy cost economy and a healthy UK. Housing and Infrastructure: Other parties encourage population growth, which has reached record levels, this puts pressure on housing and other infrastructure. We will encourage building developers to build more affordable housing and help young people get on the housing ladder by removing stamp duty on primary residences up to £500,00. Transport: We understand that rural areas require an affordable integrated transport network and strive to provide this and we will end the war on motorists. Illegal Immigration: This government has lost control of our borders. We will exit all international conventions that prevent an elected government from exercising the democratic to control who comes into our country. This is your chance to make a change, your vote is important, vote wisely, vote for the UK Independence Party.
