Hannah Kathrine Spencer, Green Party
Hannah Spencer
Green Party
Housing: Climate action through warmer homes
Every day, I see the mess our housing system is in. People paying for heat they know will leak straight back out.
A mass home insulation scheme will pay for itself overall, in saved costs. Ending for many the inhumane “choice” between heating and eating while cutting carbon emissions. We need to help local firms create a diverse new workforce to do this. I will fight for the government to force landlords to make their housing match up.
Transport: Do much more, much faster
Improvement to our transport is happening at a snail’s pace. We need rapid change. We need plans that future governments will buy into.
A quarter of households in Greater Manchester have no car. But we all suffer from air pollution, damaging health and shortening lives. I spend a big part of my working day stuck in queues, in my work van. So I see the need for change. Enabling walking and cycling on a mass scale will release untapped demand. This is how we can really reduce road congestion.
Bus improvements are welcome. I want London-style control over local and suburban rail too. We also need to think long-term. I’ll draw up plans for underground links, transforming tram and train lines into a Crossrail-type network. Plans that a future government, one serious about the north, will be eager to build.
Women and girls: Tackling gender-based violence
We’ve had three years of the current mayor’s strategy to reduce gender-based violence. How many more women and girls have to suffer serious harm before change happens? I will immediately reinstate the Serious Sexual Offences Unit, axed in 2017.
People lack trust in our police. They fear how the police deal with domestic violence, and allegations against serving officers. I will put in place an independent commissioner, focusing on complaints about officers, and on levels of domestic abuse and sexual violence. I will ensure openness and honesty about existing cases involving the police.
For all of GM: No one and nowhere left behind
I grew up in Bolton and spent over half of my life there. I saw the town I called home get left further and further behind. 14 years of austerity has damaged our towns. It’s been devastating for young people and future generations.
I will create an Independent Commissioner for Future Generations. They will make sure the mayor’s actions balance the needs of the present with the needs of future generations.
Vote Hannah
Web: hannah4gm.org.uk
Prepared by Brian Arthur Candeland of 13 Devonshire Road, Manchester, M21 8XB, agent for Hannah Kathrine Spencer, address in the district of Trafford.