In the next of our interviews with just a week to go before the Greater Manchester Mayoral elections, we talk to the Liberal Democrat Candidate Jane Brophy.
Jane has been a councillor in Trafford for 16 years, most recently securing 52% of the vote in the 2016 elections while she also works for the NHS as an Allied Health Professional in the field of dietetics, public health and nutrition.
So again we started with that same question-what are the biggest problems facing Greater Manchester at the moment
“Health and social care” says Jane immediately ” is absolutely key to get right, we have got a lot of poverty, we have got homelessness, we have got to make sure that we get social care in the right place at the right time”
And the positives? ” Manchester is a great place, I grew up here, my children went to school here and I have worked here most of my life, it is such a vibrant place and we need to harness all the creativity and make great things happen in the region.
Health and social care was mentioned so how would the Lib Dem candidate tackle the deficit?
” I will be shouting from the rooftops as Mayor to make sure we get the resources that are due.We should have the same status as London when it comes to health resources, we are an international city.”
An international city and a European City of course and the Lib Dems have planted their flag in the remain camp.The interview was done before the General Election was called, but Jane was of the firm opinion that Greater Manchester should have a seat at the negotiating table.
So to economics and that same question-how would you balance City Centre economic growth with the rest of the region?
Coming from Altrincham, Jane has seen recently how investment in the outlying towns can work and she sees no reason why this can’t be done across the region with the caveat that the green belt sites should be protected.
But pressed on whether the current model has worked, Jane was adamant that as Mayor, policy will be a bottom up grassroots affair rather than the current top down approach.
How would devolution develop? Jane says that it creates assure opportunities in devolving Heath and social care and transport, with the environment and to protect against climate change.
Soundbite-what would you do in the first 100 days
Her first priority would be to make the democratic systems accountable to people, that the role of Mayor would be to give everyone a voice who wanted one.
Her legacy? Well bringing equality across the region, removing the What she terms the North South divide across the region, the huge discrepancy in life chances, education and life expectancy, in health would be blown away
That brings us to the discontent between politics and the people.Jane has a good track record when it comes to connecting, fifty two per cent of her electorate voted her in as a councillor but that I should unusual across the region.
The reason says Jane for the general malaise is that peop,e want to see their political leaders, they want them to be approachable and they want to know what the real issues are.
