David Skaith: 'My dad was alone dying for three days, now I want to get into politics'

David Skaith, 35, held back tears as he spoke to me about his father’s death over a coffee in York.

We met to speak about his candidacy to be mayor of the York and North Yorkshire combined authority, but as is often the case, the conversation drifted.

Mr Skaith, born and raised in Harrogate, owns Winstons of York menswear store which he set up in 2015, the same year he joined the Labour Party.

His youth was dominated by sport and was a keen cricketer, playing across Yorkshire at a high level for his age, sometimes in the same team as his dad Bob.

“You think your dad is invincible when you’re that age,” Mr Skaith said reflecting on watching his 45-year-old father have a heart attack in front of him at just 13-years-old.

“He took an early retirement at 53-years-old and we hoped he’d have a new lease of life, but that never really happened,” he said.

Despite being dyslexic with a speech impediment, Mr Skaith went to York St John University to study sport before getting into retail when he moved to Brighton to be with the woman who would become his wife, Alice, while she was training to be a teacher.

But in 2021, in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, Mr Skaith saw his dad’s health deteriorate once more.

“He came over to watch me play cricket,” he said before beginning to well-up and apologised for becoming emotional.

“He had a massive heart attack on the way home.”

On Saturday, July 3, 2021, Bob Skaith was taken to Leeds hospital for specialist care, where he would stay until he passed away three days later.

“We weren’t allowed to go in because of the restrictions under COVID at the time, so obviously we stayed at home.

“We were phoning the hospital all the time and were very patient; they provided great service.”

He heard his dad had another heart attack while with his brother James, a police officer, on the Tuesday after he was admitted into hopsital.

“We were thinking that this is ridiculous and were just waiting for him to die.”

It was with that thought they got to hospital “two minutes before he passed away.”

Mr Skaith said: “He spent three days on his own in hospital.

“At the time we were very supportive of the restrictions and the hospital staff who did an amazing job.

“Then you later find out that the government was taking the p***, quite frankly," referencing the reports that figures in Boris Johnson's government were having illegal parties while other followed rules.

Mr Johnson and Rishi Sunak, who was then Chancellor, have both been fined for breaking rules during that period.

Matt Hancock, who was health secretary, resigned when he was caught breaking social distancing guidance and having an affair at work.

“We stayed away and we did what we were told while they were having parties and not following the restrictions," he said.

“That hit a nerve like nothing else, which is why I still get upset by it.”

That experience is one of the things that motivated Mr Skaith to get into politics.

He ran in the Wheldrake ward, where he lives, in the May 2023 local elections which saw Labour take hold of the City of York Council with a majority of one.

Now, Mr Skaith is Labour’s candidate to head the newly formed York and North Yorkshire combined authority.

“We’re supposed to be the sixth strongest economy in the world,” he said when assessing his view of Britain.

“There’s not enough housing, public transport is shocking, schools are falling down, NHS waiting lists are up and if you ever have any problem with your teeth then good luck.”

He will contest the position against Keane Duncan, Conservative; Felicity Cunliffe-Lister, Liberal Democrat; Kevin Foster, Green Party; and Keith Tordoff, an independent candidate.

The successful candidate will oversee an authority with £18 million per year allocation of investment funding over 30 years and new powers on transport, housing and skills.

North Yorkshire - and even parts of York - is historically Conservative, but Mr Skaith is confident he can win.

“I’ve got a really good chance,” he said.

“It’s obviously going to be very difficult because Labour hasn’t traditionally had great success in North Yorkshire.

“It’s always been a very Conservative region but I think that’s changing.”

The election for the York and North Yorkshire mayor will take place on May 2.