Your say / Politics
‘The SDP offer an alternative to Bristol’s same old political merry-go-round’
So, what is the Social Democratic Party and what do we stand for?
Some of you might remember the ‘Gang of Four’ who broke away from the Labour Party to form the SDP in 1981. The party has continued ever since and has experienced a revival ever since the publication of our ‘New Declaration’ in 2018.
Why? We offer centre-left economic policies alongside more traditional cultural values.
is needed now More than ever
Put simply, we are the ‘conservative’ left who have remained true to working people’s values and aspirations when the Labour Party dumped them and understand the need for a fairer society with properly-funded public services, but with low immigration, better integration, an ordered and respectful society, and an end to divisive identity politics.
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Read more: All the candidates running in the 2024 local elections
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We have two candidates standing in the upcoming Bristol City Council elections on Thursday May 2.
I am standing in the south of the city in Hengrove & Whitchurch Park ward and Tommy Trueman is standing in
Frome Vale ward in the east. We’re also aiming to have four candidates standing in Bristol at the next general election.
Unlike the ‘big four’ parties in Bristol, we’re offering a real, popular alternative to the same old merry-go-round.
The Labour administration of Bristol City Council has been arrogant and wasteful in equal measure, while the real needs of the people of Bristol have been ignored.
Money has been repeatedly squandered on vanity projects – never forget the £40m of our cash wasted on the Bristol Energy scheme that folded in under six years; a disgraceful white elephant and testament to how careless they are with your hard-earned money.
Meanwhile, anti-social behaviour is out of control in many parts of the city, and with no obvious initiatives to tackle the tragedy of knife crime.
Are they focusing on local housing? Hardly. The waiting list has shot up and there’s an increasing obsession with student housing that’s not only denying families a home but decimating communities with transient students.
Do we want our city centre to be full of student tower blocks and HMOs? We say no. Community matters.
Bristol has been the second fastest growing city in England and Wales in the past decade. There are a lot more people here, but services simply haven’t kept up.
The roads are in dire need of repair and new markings, and never-ending building developments are causing more
pollution – ironically in areas run by the Green Party.
The Clean Air Zone is really a tax on the poor so the middle-classes can feel better, and the SDP is committed to scrapping it.
We’re interested in real change that benefits working people, not grandstanding for its own sake.
The Saltwell Viaduct separates Wells Road from Bristol Road, Whitchurch from Hengrove, and Bristol from B&NES – photo: Martin Booth
As an SDP candidate – and local resident – of Hengrove & Whitchurch Park ward, my priorities are housing, public services and crime.
Take suitable housing for homeless families – many of them aren’t good enough for those with children and developers are exploiting those in a vulnerable position by offering properties that are too small and too expensive. This can’t be tolerated and I’ll be tackling it head-on.
I’ll also fight for more bus-stops in the ward. There’s almost a mile walk between Belland Drive and South Bristol Hospital stops, and residents in the new homes on the Boulevard and nearby need to be better served; it’s particularly unfair on the elderly and disabled.
I will push for an NHS dental service to cover our area, as we desperately need one.
I also mean business when I say zero tolerance on crime – policing needs to be focused on real crime that blights communities like the shoplifting epidemic, not hurt feelings.
A vote for the Greens is for identity politics on stilts and wacky luxury beliefs.
Labour? You know as well as I do it’ll be more of the same.
So on May 2, vote for real change! You’ll have two excellent SDP representatives that will always fight for you and focus on local issues, not the fluff that won’t make any difference to real people’s lives.
We live and breathe the areas we’re standing in and we want them to be the best they possibly can.
Vote for common sense and a stronger community; vote Tommy Trueman in Frome Vale and vote Neil Norton in Hengrove & Whitchurch Park and vote SDP on May 2.
This is an opinion piece by Neil Norton, the SDP candidate for Hengrove & Whitchurch Park
Main photo: Neil Norton
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