Kevin Foster – candidate for York and North Yorkshire Mayor
Kevin Foster, the Green Party candidate for the Mayor of York and North Yorkshire, is a very experienced councillor from Colburn near Richmond. He has lived there for most of his life and has worked hard to represent his community at every level of local government, first as a Parish and Town Councillor, then as a Richmond District councillor, and currently as a North Yorkshire Councillor where he is the Green Group leader.
On May the 2nd, with your support, he hopes to be elected as the first ever mayor of the new authority and become the first ever directly elected Green mayor anywhere in the UK.
Kevin says “The Greens have a real chance in this election. We have a track record of winning council seats in both York and in North Yorkshire. It is a new authority, and we need to get it off to a good start by having a mayor committed to co-operative working across party lines. A win for either Conservative or Labour would give them an automatic majority on the new authority which could entrench partizan decision making.”
The Mayoral authority has its own budget and its own areas of responsibility. A team of officers is already in place which means the new Mayor can immediately get action on their priorities and start making a difference from day one. The full powers and responsibilities are set out in the Combined Authority Constitution. In summary these include:
- Responsibility for 30-year Mayoral Investment Fund and the powers to borrow against funds
- Full devolution of the Adult Education Budget
- Powers to improve the supply and quality of housing and secure the development of land or infrastructure
- Powers and funds to improve transport through a consolidated, devolved, multi-year transport settlement
- Responsibilities for community safety and the powers to appoint a Deputy Mayor who will carry out many of the duties currently held by the Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner
If elected, Kevin’s priorities are:
- Securing sustainable jobs
Kevin will promote a Circular Economy so that we hang on to the value we create and retain good jobs in the region. He will attract inward investment by promoting York & North Yorkshire as an ideal place to nurture and grow innovative, environmentally-friendly businesses and lead the way to a Net Zero economy for our region as soon as possible. - Improving Housing & Transport
Kevin will champion affordable housing and high standards for insulation and renewable energy heating systems. We need safe, warm homes that are cheap to run and good for the environment. Kevin supports the £50m York Central brownfield redevelopment.
Kevin says, “It is vital to improve our failing public transport system so that residents can benefit from all of life’s opportunities, particularly employment and education, without relying on access to a car”. - Winning a fair share for York & North Yorkshire
Kevin’s mayoral team will work across party lines, engaging with national government, York Council, North Yorkshire Council and other agencies to bring forward projects that will improve our area. Winning our fair share of grants and investment needs a first-class team that puts the interests of our whole area ahead of party politics.
Kevin says “The mayor’s £18m/year budget is enough to prime the pump, but to make a real difference we need to secure at least ten times more than that by winning government grants and inward investment”.
If you would like to help get a Green Mayor elected or find out more about Kevin’s campaign priorities contact Kevin at Kevin.Foster@votegreen.uk
If you would like to help Kevin fund the £5,000 deposit needed to enter the contest you can make a donation here https://www.crowdfunder.co.uk/p/greenmayorforyorkandnorthyorkshire/backers#start
Promoted on behalf of Kevin Foster by Allan Mortimer, The Old Vicarage, Belbrough Lane, Hutton Rudby, North Yorkshire, TS15 0HY