Yorkshire First party leader to run for Dewsbury seat

The leader of a new political party focused on giving more power to Yorkshire is set to run for Dewsbury in May’s General Election.

Richard Carter has been selected by Yorkshire First as its candidate, after co-founding the party in April last year.

He said: “We are a new party with ordinary people united by the belief that Yorkshire can do better.

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“We want to build a Yorkshire where all who were born here, or have chosen this great place to live, work or play, are proud to call themselves Yorkshire folk.

“However, we are living in a country that has 9 out of the 10 poorest areas in the whole of northern Europe. Three of those are in historic Yorkshire. At the same time London is the richest. That is not good enough.”

Richard was a candidate in the European Parliament elections where the party, just seven weeks after its inception, gained 19,000 votes. The party wants a voice for Yorkshire with similar powers to Scotland, to help build a United Kingdom that works for all regions.

He added: “It is the national parties that have allowed this situation to arise. And it is now time for real change. I am the 13th candidate to be announced by Yorkshire First, and we will give people a positive choice - a vote for a voice for Yorkshire, that demands similar powers to those of Scotland. After all we have a larger population than Scotland, and an economy twice that of the Welsh, but with the powers of neither.

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“Too many decisions in this country are taken in Whitehall. That has to change. I want to see more powers devolved away from London to Yorkshire. I also want to see much more local decision-making in our towns and villages where more decisions are taken by people and not politicians.”