Bognor Regis and Littlehampton Commons candidates hash out the issues at election hustings

This year’s election takes place under interesting circumstances for the constituency, after long-serving MP Nick Gibb announced he would not be standing for re-election late last year. Candidates from five different parties have stepped forward to make their voices heard and offer distinct perspectives on the issues facing our communities.

Taking part in yesterday’s event was: Carol Birch from the Green Party, Sandra Daniells from Reform UK, Alison Griffiths from the Conservatives, Henry Jones from the Liberal Democrats, David Kurten from the Heritage Party, and Clare Walsh from the Labour Party.

The hustings itself was organised by Ben Leney from King’s Gate Church, Revd Jo King from Holy Cross in North Bersted, and Fr Chris Bergin from Our Lady of Sorrows, in a bid to give members of the public a chance to scrutinise candidates from across the political spectrum.

After introducing themselves, each candidate was presented with a series of questions touching on issues close to the community’s hearts, including the cost of living crisis, housing, healthcare, education, migration, criminal justice and the environment.

Labour’s Clare Walsh clashed with Alison Griffiths after the Conservative candidate claimed that Starmer’s plan to delay the A27 suggested infrastructural funding might be headed away from Arun District to other parts of the country. Walsh countered by suggesting plans for the A27 would be revisited in due course if a Labour government is installed, since plans as they currently exist are, ‘never going to work and poor value for money anyway.’

Asked about NHS dentistry provision, Liberal Democrat Henry Jones said the service is ‘on its knees’: “What needs to be done immediately is to reform the NHS dental contract. We need to make sure that there is actually a guarantee that children, vulnerable people and the elderly can have NHS dentists and that can only be done if that dental contract is reformed."Reform Party founder David Kurten, meanwhile, argued that the solution to dental provision had much more to do with properly reallocating resources. He called the NHS ‘grossly mismanaged’ and argued that money should no longer be spent on unnecessary procurements, and instead spent on training and provision. He added that the government can fund dental provision ‘when it wants to’, gesturing at the provision of an NHS dentists for those living on the controversial Bibby Stockholm barge in Portland, which has been much criticised by human rights groups for poor living conditions.

On social housing, Green Party candidate Carol Birch said the current social housing system remains untenable: “It doesn’t take much funding, actually, to be moved around to address the issue,” she said. We are building housing, but we’re not providing social housing the way we should do. It’s going into private hands and businesses.” She said the Green Party would look to improve the private rental market with better rent controls and by bringing empty properties – of which there are approximately 1 million in the UK – back into use.

Sandra Daniells, for Reform, said that she believes a shortage of local housing is the result of ‘mass immigration’, saying “we want to stop boats bringing in more and more people. It’s a no brainer, if you keep doing it you’re going to have a shortage of social housing.”

She also said the party would scrap the Renters Reform Bill, which will impose stricter obligations on landlords in relation to rented properties.

Reflecting on the Hustings, Fr Chris Bergin said: “The evening allowed attendees to reflect on local and national issues in the light of the Gospel and hear the views of those who aspire to represent them. It was incredibly valuable to have the opportunity to bring our questions and concerns into the public square, and to hear from prospective MPs from across the political spectrum.”