Meet the candidates for Newcastle upon Tyne East

Whether you care about politics or not, somebody is about to be voted in to decide how to run your area and represent your locality for at least the next four years.

Maybe you haven’t been swayed yet by the big wigs in London and can’t make up your mind. Or maybe you want to live on the edge and risk changing your vote at the last minute. Meet the candidates who are vying for your vote:

Nick Brown, Labour

He’s originally from Kent and a Manchester grad. He’s been an MP since 1983 and has held a seat ever since. He was elected MP of Newcastle East in 2010.

Nick has said: “My priority for East Newcastle is securing long-term, well-paid, sustainable jobs for our community” and is a critic of austerity. He wants the same choice of jobs and opportunities for his constituents that are enjoyed in other parts of the UK.

Nick’s chance of being re-elected stand at 99 per cent with a predicted 50 per cent share of the vote. It’s pretty likely he’s going to be an MP for the next Parliament. Vote for him if you’re planning on staying in Newcastle and believe he can strengthen the local economy.

Duncan Crute, Conservative

Duncan is Geordie born and bred having lived in the Toon for 24 years and attended Strathclyde. He runs his own tailoring company and has previously worked as in a marketing consultancy.

He promises to strive in the promotion of Newcastle East as “a great place to live”, to work with businesses to create new jobs and to provide cost effective service to vulnerable people.

Statistically Duncan has a one per cent chance of winning the seat to become Newcastle East MP. He’s likely to get around 14 per cent of the overall vote for the area. Vote for him if you want what he calls a “fresh approach” and fancy trying to grab yourself a bargain from his business.

Wendy Taylor, Liberal Democrats

Wendy is no stranger to Newcastle East, having stood as the Lib Dem candidate in 2010. Dr Taylor is a medicine graduate from Newcastle who trained in the area as well as in Durham, she’s a keen charity supporter.

She’s particular keen to safeguard the NHS and has made health a main part of her campaign. She wants to secure “a fair deal for university funding” as well as focusing on improving the community with affordable housing on brownfield sites – remember that from Geography lessons.

Despite coming second and securing a third of the votes in the last election, it’s predicted Taylor will drop down to a 19 per cent share of the votes. She has a one per cent chance of winning the seat. Vote for Dr Taylor if you want a focus on NHS care and the fact she might end up treating you one day.

Andrew Gray, Green

Andrew is an active figure in the local community and can be regularly seen knocking on doors and recently protested at the anti-Pegida march. He was born in Newcastle and graduated from Cambridge with Classics.

He’s focused particularly on housing during his campaign and wants to provide housing that’s affordable and built in an environmentally friendly way as well as wanting to launch a mass insulation programme.

Despite having less than a one per cent chance of winning the seat, he’s set to take 6.5 one per cent of the predicted votes which is a decent rise from the 1.6 per cent he won in 2010. Vote for him if the environment and secure affordable housing is at the top of your agenda.

David Robinson-Young, UKIP

David is a barrister at Broad Chare Chambers and is a graduate from our very own Northumbria. He specialises in employment discrimination as well as advocacy and negotiation.

Tyneside-born David has said: “I strongly believe in the people of this city and that they deserve to have a voice.

“The way to achieve this is to break free from the one party state that Newcastle has become.”

David has less than one per cent chance of becoming Newcastle East MP but is predicted to take 10 per cent of the vote for the area and overtake the Greens. Vote for David if you believe immigration needs to be tackled and want more spending at home than abroad.

Paul Phillips, Trade Unionist and Socialist Coalition

Heaton lad Paul says he’ll be a working MP on a working man’s wage if voted in. His campaign has focused on an end to austerity and the Coalition cuts.

Paul wants to introduce a £10 an hour minimum wage, to reverse privatisation and to abolish anti-democratic trade union laws.

He’s likely to receive less than one per cent of the votes for Newcastle East, a drop since the 2010 election. Vote for Paul if you want a total end to the cuts and want to tax the super-rich.

Mollie Stevenson, Communist Party of Britain

Born in the Toon and living in North Tyneside, working mum Mollie is sick of the millionaires running Britain for a profit. She’s a member of Unite trade union and believes the Coalition needs to be ousted from power.

A former Labour member, she moved to the Commies and is championing a “left wing programme of alternative policies – policies for the millions, not for the millionaires”.

Stevenson hasn’t got a chance of winning the seat for Newcastle East and is predicted to share less than one per cent of the vote. Vote for her if you prioritise peace, investment in jobs and public ownership, or you want to make a protest vote.