an interesting hustings

The 'Churches Together' group organised a hustings in Beverley Minster on 26 April. I'm sorry it has taken time to reflect on it in the blog. All in all it was good for the Greens. 250 or so came, and the feedback afterwards was positive. A few more thousand needed before I can be confident of winning the seat.

Post Mortem

The hustings last night was good in parts, I suppose. I've looked through most of it, and reminded myself (once again) to look at the camera. But - the experience is certainly very testing.

I must confess to making a 'slip'. Things were going extremely well, when I was asked a question and I should have known the answer, but didn't. So, can you guess what I did? I gave the answer to another question. Now, this is OK, and a well established ploy by media savvy operators. However, I compounded the problem by giving the wrong answer to the question that hadn't been put (if you see what I mean).

Memo to oneself: keep to the truth - don't answer if you don't know the answer. Blundering on makes the situation worse. The lesson is that pontificating in public is harder than it looks. There is no substitute for knowing the stuff through and through.

There: I've said it.

This morning (Friday) we registered three candidates with the Returning Officer: Michael Jackson for East Yorkshire, Shan Oakes for Haltemprice and Howden and Bill Rigby for Beverley and Holderness.

Live TV Hustings - Today

After a solo show yesterday, there is a hustings at 7 pm this evening. This is plenty of time before the distraction of the national head to head - so viewers will be able to compare.

You can see it live or later at your leisure.

Broadening the agenda

Shan did me proud with this letter, also in last week's Beverley Guardian.

Longcroft School hustings

This event (19 March) was organised by the East Riding Youth Assembly (as you can see), chaired by one of the Longcroft students, in front of forty or so sixth formers. The candidates are beginning to know each other quite well! L to R Bill (Green) Ian (Lab) and Graham (Con).

Again, a cracking range of issues, which gave no-one an easy time.

Hustings at Wilberforce

It's Wednesday - it must be Wilberforce. We are beginning to get into a rhythm. Yesterday's event was at one of Hull's sixth form colleges whose students come in large numbers from the Beverley and Holderness patch. So I was pleased to be able to share a platform with (L to R), Christine (Con), Stephan (the Principal), Jonathan (entrepreneur), Mike (Lib Dem), Ian (Lab).

Six scorching questions: Why bother to vote? Should we be in Afghanistan? Is global warming an issue? HE fees - should they continue? Are the BNP now 'mainstream'? and, finally, how do you eat a cream egg?

Half of the audience of 120 or so is old enough to vote. Asked at the beginning, how many intend to vote, only a minority responded. I hope we persuaded some to change their mind. One student afterwards gave Greens the victory in debate - maybe he was a voter!