Helen Davison

Live, one-hour webchat with Helen Davison, the Green Party's parliamentary candidate for Carlisle

3rd & 7 37yd

Hi, This is the webchat for Helen Davison. We are just testing links.

by Ian, News & Star 4/24/2015 10:46:38 AM
The chat will start at 12noon

by Ian, News & Star 4/24/2015 10:55:54 AM
Hi, I'm Helen, the Green Party's parliamentary candidate for Carlisle. I'm here to take your questions over the next hour.

by Helen Davison 4/24/2015 11:03:15 AM
Why should any writer or artist get your vote when you plan to reduce copyright to 14 years, thus crippling their livelihoods.
Once a work is out of copyright, the author makes no money from it, and has no control over how it is exploited. How can the Green Party can think this is a good plan?

by Euan Kerr 4/24/2015 11:04:31 AM
Hi Euan. Do you have a reference for the Green Party saying this please?

by Helen Davison 4/24/2015 11:06:03 AM
I'm a floating voter, why should I vote for you? What are you going to bring to the table that the other candidates aren't?

by Grant 4/24/2015 11:06:28 AM
Hi Grant. We are the only mainstream anti-austerity party in England. I'm despairing of the cuts that are happening to our public services. Our current politics is dominated by a small elite group which are failing to realise our society's potential. We will properly invest in people and services, creating 1 million jobs in housing, social and health care and renewable energy and energy efficiency measures. These jobs will pay at least a living wage. As a voter are there any particular issues that are important to you?

by Helen Davison 4/24/2015 11:12:19 AM
Yes certainly Helen, it's from the Green Party website. Take a read here - policy.greenparty.org.uk

by Euan Kerr 4/24/2015 11:12:30 AM
I must also confess to having some reservations about your leader nationally. I've not been too impressed with her showing during TV debates. Is what we've seen a true representation of who she is?

by Grant 4/24/2015 11:12:42 AM
Hi Euan. On page 61 of our manifesto it talks about information and digital rights. We do support shorter copyrights in length but this does not apply to individuals, only multinational companies. The reference you refer to is a policy discussion document which has not made it to our final manifesto. Our policy formation is an ongoing process decided by party members at conference. We welcome input from those outside the party.

by Helen Davison 4/24/2015 11:16:31 AM
It's also in most of todays papers

by Euan Kerr 4/24/2015 11:16:59 AM
I'm sure you mean well but, be honest, can you really make a difference to anything in Carlisle?

by Josie 4/24/2015 11:19:38 AM
What are your policies for Carlisle? As an MP how would you benefit the city in general and me as a person?

by Jon 4/24/2015 11:19:41 AM
Hi Grant. I've met Natalie personally a couple of times and I don't feel at all that what we have seen on the debates truly reflects personality. She's passionate about creating a fairer society and is a strong speaker as we have seen more recently. Green Party people are not robots and are not manipulated by spin doctors. Sometimes things go wrong as with her LBC interview. Having done some hustings for the first time myself I am aware what a challenging position it is to put yourself in.

by Helen Davison 4/24/2015 11:19:49 AM
Hi Euan. It's important that we have a debate in society about information and digital rights and how big companies and government abuse both.

by Helen Davison 4/24/2015 11:21:51 AM
What do you think of the rumoured plans to place wind turbines in Rickerby Park?

by Mary Thompson 4/24/2015 11:26:17 AM
Hi Josie. Having worked in the public and voluntary sector locally I have seen first hand the damage that cuts supported by our mains parties have been doing to individuals in our community and our social fabric. I really believe that the Green Party's policies of ending austerity, investing in our society and ensuring everyone is paid fairly for work they do would make a huge difference to the lives of many individuals in Carlisle. Where we also could make a real difference is getting some green councillors elected to our city council. We are fielding a full slate of candidates for the city council elections. In the Euro elections in Carlisle last year we beat the lib dems and when I joined the Green Party membership was a 9000. Now it is over 60,000. People want better.

by Helen Davison 4/24/2015 11:26:39 AM
Do you support Natalie Bennet in her backing of a trade and cultural boycott of Israel?

by Norman Finkelstein 4/24/2015 11:28:06 AM
Hi Jon. Please see my response to Josie below as to how the Greens would benefit the city. Can you explain what you mean by benefitting you as a person?

by Helen Davison 4/24/2015 11:29:19 AM
Hi Mary. I've not heard those rumours!

by Helen Davison 4/24/2015 11:29:50 AM
Hi Norman. We seek a just and peaceful solution to the Arab Israeli conflict and condemn human rights violations wherever they occur. We seek to suspend the EU Israel association agreement. I agree with Green Party policy on this. Natalie was expressing a personal view.

by Helen Davison 4/24/2015 11:33:02 AM
Whatever happened to climate change? It used to dominate the news, now you never hear of it.

by Jenks 4/24/2015 11:33:13 AM
Does anyone really care if pandas and polar bears become extinct?

by Jacques Oeuf 4/24/2015 11:33:18 AM
Wind turbines. We've had more than enough of them in Carlisle and Cumbria. Will you call a halt?

by Frank 4/24/2015 11:33:28 AM
Is it right to kill grey squirrels to save the red ones?

by Agnes 4/24/2015 11:37:59 AM
I was sad to see Alan Titchmarsh stand down as party leader but think the party is in good hands with Monty Don. Is there any plans for him to visit Carlisle?

by Joan Trellis 4/24/2015 11:43:39 AM
Helen. Great if your party is anti-austerity, but tell me how the Greens would balance the books without making some difficult decisions over cuts?

by Alice 4/24/2015 11:45:14 AM
When I read that bit in the manifesto I took it to mean 14 years after the creator has passed away, not 14 years after date of copyright. Which isn't a bad idea when you think about it.

by JJ 4/24/2015 11:45:44 AM
Health is a key issue nationally and a priority locally, and yet the Greens do not seem to have said much about how they would solve it. How would you rescue our failing hospitals?

by Jane 4/24/2015 11:54:21 AM
Just five minutes of the session left...

by Ian, News & Star 4/24/2015 11:56:45 AM
Hi Jane. I have spent most of my working life in the NHS and it a subject very dear to my heart. The Greens have been saying a lot about how we would solve it, but the media have not been covering it. We will end NHS privatisation, repeal the Health and Social care bill and introduce a new NHS bill that will rebuild and reinvest in the NHS, without corporate interests. People's health should not be put up for auction dependent on ability to pay. We would properly invest in the NHS to ensure sufficient staff are able to provide the quality service that we all need from it.

by Helen Davison 4/24/2015 11:58:07 AM
Hi Hannah. Pages 31 to 35 of our manifesto cover our health pledges and our view on health. We want to put patients at the heart of our NHS. The media are obsessed with us being an environmental party when there is much more to us than that.

by Helen Davison 4/24/2015 12:00:25 PM
That is the hour up folks! By my reckoning, there is just one released question still to be answered - that's Ann's at 12.56 re housing. For the rest, sorry, we ran out of time...

by Ian, News & Star 4/24/2015 12:01:51 PM
Hi Ann. We have a real housing crisis in the UK at the mo but we do not support the development on green field sites. We would want to see the use of brownfield sites and recommissioning of existing unused housing stock. The green party has committed to investing in affordable social housing for people.

by Helen Davison 4/24/2015 12:02:38 PM
Please forward any further questions to our Facebook page or come and see us in Carlisle city centre, where we will be campaigning tomorrow!

by Carlisle & Eden Green Party 4/24/2015 12:04:11 PM
Thanks to everyone for submitting questions. Sorry that we couldn't get through them all.

And thanks to Helen for giving up an hour to take part and answer them.

by Ian, News & Star 4/24/2015 12:04:52 PM