Interview with Charlie Abel, ALBA Party candidate in Kincorth/Nigg/Cove, Aberdeen

 Interview with Charlie Abel, ALBA Party candidate in Kincorth/Nigg/Cove, Aberdeen

• Why an Alba Party candidate in Kincorth?

Well, this is where I live and this is where my family are, and I feel strongly about independence and I was helping the other candidate that was standing with his campaign, so then I agreed to stand in the area. I’ve never been a politician before, this is my first attempt in politics but I feel strongly about Scottish independence, and I think if I don’t do it no one else is going to do it.

• What are the main issues you want to prioritise in this campaign?

Independence is bigger than a local issue, but I think it’s an issue that faces us as a major issue. Scotland not being independent is creating a massive injustice on our people, and we are the energy capital of Europe here in Aberdeen, from where I live I can look at the window and I see the biggest offshore windfarm in the world, so with an energy rich country we produce gas six times more than our needs. The renewable production in Scotland is five times more than our needs, yet the standing charges in our electric power have just doubled and they are going to double again in October; the prices went up, we pay more on transmission charges in Scotland, which is a great shame and a massive injustice. The only way Scotland will get that sorted out is through independence, because Westminster has no intention in helping us. 

• Why have you chosen to run as an Alba Party candidate and not as an SNP one?

I was an SNP member and I used to deliver leaflets for the SNP, but I became disillusioned with the direction of the party leadership a couple of years ago. The SNP leadership are prevaricating on independence, they’re more a party of devolution and they use independence to keep themselves in power, some of them are quite comfortable there on their high salaries. The First Minister said she had time on her side, but the rest of us don’t have time on our side, we need our independence and we need it as soon as possible. I don’t think the approach the SNP are taking on trying to get a referendum from Boris Johnson is a good position for the Scottish people, we don’t need permission to have a referendum, we are sovereign people and if we want to have a referendum on independence or any subject, we shouldn’t be neeeding permission from Westminster.

Interview with Bryce Hope, Scottish Libertarians candidate in Kincorth, Aberdeen

Interview with Bryce Hope, Scottish Libertarians candidate in Kincorth, Aberdeen 

Why a libertarian candidate in Kincorth?

To answer that I will describe what a libertarian is and then put that into some kind of perspective. 

A libertarian is fundamentally opposed to force, coercion and theft. We believe that people should have the freedom to choose - including choosing to be the one who makes change. Therefore we advocate for free markets because it's the most moral and efficient, simply because it is not based on brute force, but trade and cooperation. 

This is why libertarians stand for minimal government: whatever the state does, the wealth must be taken by force or stealth from those who have produced it.

So what does this mean in real life? And what might it mean for the people of Kincorth? 

The residents of Kincorth would have someone who would fight their corner no matter what. If a resident is charged for a service that they are not getting then I will get them that service! If the council are as unenthusiastic as usual, then I will be a thorn in their side until they do what they should be doing. I will also spend my time exposing what the council (and government) are doing with our money. I will focus them on potholes, waste and maintaining key infrastructure, rather than costly vanity projects and criminalising the innocent. 

A libertarian perspective would greatly revitalise local industry including our scarred and beleaguered Union Street. Our sound economic principles would put a stop to small, local powerhouses of business being out-regulated and replaced by multinational forces who gain the upper hand in government campaigns through press, appeal and lobbying. I would also fight to put a stop to the OUTRAGEOUS business rates and quango fees that only big companies can afford.

What are the main issues you want to prioritise in this campaign?

The biggest priority for me is getting more money back into the pockets of ordinary folk - or, more accurately, letting them keep it! It is my belief that this so-called ‘cost of living crisis’ is caused primarily by national governments, but the local governments are as much to blame. Spending is completely out of control, hundreds of council workers still work from home and the resident of Aberdeen - or wherever they may be - is left feeling completely ripped off. 

This leads me to my second biggest priority which is promoting competition.

Why should a young entrepreneur have to first satisfy a committee made up of their future competitors in order to start a business? That is exactly what you ask of anyone who finds a property and wishes to open a bar or restaurant (or most businesses these days). 

Why should a patient at a surgery be forced to stay with that GP by law if they do not feel they are getting the service they need? That is exactly what happens when Health Boards (committees) run rampant on fundamental rights and kowtow to the demands of failing quangos (private organisations “employed” by governments). 

Why should a parent be forced to send their child to an education establishment if they feel it is to the detriment of the child? That is what happens when councils centralise schools and snatch control from parents in order to promote “popular” doctrines. I could go on forever.

Organisations run by bureaucrats are failing ordinary people. I will make them buck up and get out of our way!

Why is the Libertarian party the best alternative to other parties in your area?

In this specific ward, of course I am going to say yes. But that doesn’t mean there aren’t other options out there. I would urge people to vote for any party standing for individual freedom. For Aberdeen, by my judgement that means seven choices. We have libertarian candidates in Kincorth/Nigg/Cove and Torry/Ferryhill Wards. The Scottish Family Party have candidates running in five other wards and I would urge voters in those areas to give your support to them. The independent candidates may also have similar views that oppose further state intervention and I look forward to hearing their ideas.

No legacy party will stand up for you. The SLP and the SFP have plenty enough in common to fight this battle together. We could tackle corruption, expose wasteful spending and put the lagging legacy parties back in their place. We could tackle interference into education and increasingly centralised schooling and finally have councillors who will not bend to the demands of centralised governments in Holyrood and Westminster.

I would urge everyone to find out more about libertarianism by visiting our website where we have resources, information and videos - www.scottishlibertarians.com.

Interview with Shane Painter, Scottish Conservative candidate in George Street & Harbour, Aberdeen

Interview with Shane Painter, Scottish Conservative candidate in George Street & Harbour, Aberdeen

• Why a Scottish Conservative candidate in George Street & Harbour?

We’re fortunate enough to have elected a Scottish Conservative (councillor) in George Street and Harbour in 2017 and I think the work my predecessor has done is absolutely incredible and it shows the strength of what Conservatives can do in the local area. We’re fortunate enough in Aberdeen to be in administration and having a councillor in that administration that’s been incredibly beneficial. We’ve got currently a 150 million pounds master plan which will regenerate our beach area and the city centre to make them a place that’s fit for the 21st century and will bring it into the modern world. Across Britain the high streets are struggling and we’ve got tons of problems the pandemic brought us, being in the administration has given us that voice to fix what we want to. I think there’s so much that local councillors can do and we recognise that George Street and Harbour is not by any means a typical Conservative area. It’s a city centre ward, it’s not particularly an affluent area in comparison to any other areas of the city, so we don’t take any votes for granted and I recognise there’s a lot of work to do to get people out to vote; but having a voice in the administration for the local area is just beneficial and being in the administration makes our voice louder and stronger. 

• What are the main issues you want to prioritise in this campaign?

We recently had a vote in the council here to pedestrianise the main high street, and speaking with members of the public, speaking with business leaders; we recognised this is the way to go forward. We have to do something new to rejuvenate our high streets to bring people back and we believe that after speaking with so many different stakeholders, the pedestrianisation is the right way to do it. We have to absolutely get it right so the pedestrianisation doesn’t exclude people and we have to listen to perfectly legitimate concerns of those who might not be able to, and we have to make sure that they can still access like anyone else. Pedestrianisation is building back from the pandemic and doing something new, that’s going to make a critical part (of the campaign) but beyond that George Street and Harbour is not one of the most affluent areas of the city. 

The ward has lower income brackets compared to some other areas. The poverty rate is higher and we’ve got higher levels of anti-social behaviour, so tackling that and how we go about it in a way that will encompass multiple different organisations and that the council can’t do on its own, that is going to play a critical role as well, fighting for a cleaner city centre that is attractive to people. 

And of course we had the pandemic, and we’ve got to focus on recovery from that and how we can support schools, local communities, our NHS, etc.

• Why are the Scottish Conservatives the best alternative to the SNP and Labour?

I’ll start with Labour first. The coalition that has been on Aberdeen City Council since 2017 has been a Conservative-Labour one, with some independents. On paper, that doesn’t sound like it should work, it sounds like the parties can’t work together, but what we’ve done and what’s happened is that we’ve worked with Labour and we’ve put aside our differences, we’ve used those differences to work together for the benefit of the city and the area as a whole. The administration’s budget for the next year is a proof of how when the left and the right come together and work together they can produce something quite positive. In the last budget, we’ve got 1 million pound fuel poverty fund to help those who had been left behind by the Scottish Government. We’ve managed to protect our schools and our young people from SNP cuts, because the SNP have cut budgets across Scotland for no obvious reason. We’ve worked well with Labour and I’m sure it’s something that we’ll consider doing in the future depending on how the election goes. 

The SNP is still focused on a divisive second referendum, and there are more important things, everyone recognises that. People’s priorities are not the same as they were in 2014. They want an administration that is focused on them and their concerns, and at the moment that’s just not independence. When it comes to the SNP, outside of their rhetoric around independence, they’ve got no ideas. They unfortunately lost the bill on pedestrianisation by 1 and that was led by the Liberal Democrats and them. They want to hold Aberdeen back, they want to hold it in the past. We’re not living in 30-40 years ago when this was a prosperous area, things have changed, shopping habits have changed and we have to change with it; otherwise we’ll just have managed decline. The SNP have no ideas, it’s just holding us back, it’s not moving anywhere and it’s just going to be the detriment to us all if the SNP gets into administration here.