Election candidate vows to upgrade local hospital services
Gordon Johnson MBE, a former magistrate and member of Filey Town Council, has unveiled his pledges as he stands for the People’s Party as an independent candidate in the upcoming election.
These include working to improve the service at Malton, Norton & District Hospital as well as tackling waiting times and boosting the availability of doctors for all residents, and taking a closer look at the accessibility of local public event spaces to ensure enhanced facilities and access for people of all abilities.
Mr Johnson, who has been a prominent figure in the community for decades, has also promised to “ensure councillors do the job they are paid for and ensure they don’t devolve responsibility back to civil servants” if he is elected as an MP; he has sworn to propose bills in Parliament to investigate council management and structure, and is keen to overhaul the local planning system.
He has also vowed to fight to prevent the closure of Silver Birches care home in Filey and to look at other care homes in Malton, Thirsk and Ryedale that are under threat.
"I am not associated with any other candidates or registered party, I stand to represent you and your concerns," he says.
"I am standing for the People's Party, which means if you request that I do something then I will do it. Should I disagree, I will say so and discuss it with you further to find a satisfactory conclusion. If you still insist, I will put forward a motion – if two groups of people disagree, they can have a referendum and I will obtain a motion for the group with the most votes.
“The People's Party is for all the people, including religious and political associations, and it is set up to be entirely democratic and under your control.”
A chartered engineer, Mr Johnson runs his own engineering consultancy and is a fellow of the Institute of Directors as well as a number of other chartered professional institutions, which all support his integrity as a candidate.
His involvement in the community spans decades since he moved to the area in the late 1950s from the services to work for Dale Electric: he has been a group Scout leader, Sea Scout leader, school governor and is a past treasurer of Filey Allotments Association. He has also used his insights as a Justice of the Peace to chair the advisory board of Nacro, a national social justice charity working to reduce crime and strengthen communities.
If elected, he proposes helping reduce unemployment at the same time as boosting farming in the area “to provide sufficient crops to reduce the necessity of imports to this country, and encourage potato crops to reduce the need to import from abroad”.
An opponent of fracking, he also has the climate crisis in his sights and would create a plan to protect our natural assets and landscape from extreme weather conditions, analysing the risks of landslips and damage to make sure no areas are reduced or damaged; planting and pollarding trees are among the measures he proposes, as well as geographical reports.
Mr Johnson supports the Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s promises on “education, family affairs and fracking” but is clear that he will “oppose any ideas that go against the good of the people”.
He plans to promote railways, road and port changes “for new trade, industry and moving goods” and he would be keen to explore the possibility of developing the rail line from Whitby to Filey then on to Doncaster, Hull and London, which could make the journey as fast as that from York from London to benefit residents, and particularly businesspeople.
He is also outspoken on the subject of local bank closures and their detrimental effect on older residents in particular, and would seek to reinstate local branches to allow easier access for everyone.
Gordon Johnson can be contacted on 01723 512411 or on 07713 628676.
This content has been paid for by Gordon Johnson, independent general election candidate in the Thirsk and Malton constituency, and does not necessarily reflect the views of The Yorkshire Post.