AHEAD of the general election we are giving our readers the chance to find out more about what their local candidates stand for.

We will be asking all the candidates in South and West Dorset about the issues that matter to voters in the county and trying to give the electorate an insight into their priorities before they go to the ballot box on Thursday, May 7.

Today we hear from Green Party South Dorset Parliamentary candidate Jane Burnet.

You can watch a video of our interview below.

How do you propose to make the voice of Dorset people heard in Parliament?

The best way to have the voice of Dorset people heard is for them to vote for a political party that the main Westminster parties are not expecting them to vote for – in other words, the Green Party. A big vote in South Dorset will certainly put this area on the map and we can demand policies that have at their heart the aim to develop the economy in a way that serves us all and not just a few, in a way that protects the environment, in a way that allows our local communities to thrive.

Is enough being done at a national government level to support rural economies like Dorset?

The Dorset rural economy has been largely ignored by Government because it is very much on the periphery of the UK’s economic core. Too much investment is being focused on London and the South East at the expense of rural economies like Dorset. For example, the Government’s transport policy. Billions are being spent on High Speed 2 to increase an already quick journey time between London and Birmingham – while we are left here with a train that travels at 27mph to Bristol. If the line to Bristol was improved, we could tap in to the thriving Bristol economy, and people from Bristol could travel here to enjoy the countryside and boost the local economy.

How will you protect frontline services such as the NHS and policing in the county?

Through our tax policies we would like to ensure that there is enough funding for services. But as far as the NHS is concerned, just as important is to take the market out of the service. The tendering process costs millions and results in a fragmentation of the services. The NHS should be run wholly by the public sector.

As far as policing is concerned, we would like to see the abolition of PCCs and instead more community policing and crime prevention.

Recent years have seen cuts to many services in Dorset. Would you expect to see more cuts or less during the next Parliament if your party is successful in the elections?

If the Green Party achieves a good vote, the electorate will be demonstrating their desire to see an end to cuts in public services and see the debts and deficit dealt with by increasing taxes on individuals and corporations who can afford to pay them. The amount of tax lost through non-payment and avoidance is £30billion a year.

We know that the cuts to spending proposed by other parties are not necessary if our tax policies and changes to spending priorities are activated by the next UK Government.

Dorset like much of the country, has an ageing population. What problems does this pose for Government and what do you propose to do to reflect the changing demographic?

The Green Party wants to see local government funding restored to 2011 levels so that social care for the elderly can be delivered; so that the elderly are not pushed in to hospital when they need not be. It’s well-known that the Green Party wants to improve public transport, upon which the elderly depend.

Approximately 47 per cent of benefit spending goes on pensions and an ageing population needs more health and social care and better public transport. This will cause a problem for any Government wanting to cut spending. Where on earth will those cuts fall? This is one of the reasons why we do not accept austerity as a solution to the debt and deficit.

We also want to see a citizens pension of £180 per week for a single person and £310 per week for a couple so that the elderly can afford to keep themselves warm, well-fed and to live in dignity.

Existing pensions and pension credits cost £90bn. A citizens pensions would cost an extra £26bn. But this could be paid for by removing the tax and National Insurance relief within private pensions which do not provide good value-for-money for the taxpayer.

What would you do to improve the life chances of career opportunities of young people in Dorset?

South Dorset has above the average number of young people not in education, employment or training (NEETS).

Our education policy is clear; we believe the curriculum should be far more flexible and should tap in to local potential. Dorset has a rural, coastal environment and we should be encouraging the growth of industries here that can exploit those assets – the marine sector, for example. Those could provide superb training opportunities. which would encourage our young people to stay.

The Green Party also wants to see tuition fees abolished. Under the tuition fees repayment scheme, students start repaying their loan when they earn £21,000 and have to pay at a rate of nine per cent of their salary. This effectively means, with the current tax rate, that they are paying out 29 per cent of their salary.

It is known that 73 per cent of students will never be able to repay their loans. And although the Labour party is promising to reduce tuition fees to £6,000, only those ending up in the highest paid jobs will repay their debt and be relieved of the nine per cent salary deductions those in lower paying jobs will be saddled with.

When you have been out on the doorstep talking to voters, what has been the main issue raised by the electorate?

The electorate is disillusioned with the three main parties and there is a sense that people are feeling real struggle in their daily lives.

READERS’ QUESTIONS

If you had to make a choice between what’s right for our country’s economy, defence, the NHS, education or the unemployment rate, what would you prioritise first and why? (Nick Mason)

Instead of unemployment, I would say underemployment. The number of people on zero hours contracts and insufficient work. This causes all sorts of other social problems such as an inability to pay for housing and can lead to causes stress, mental health problems and quite often family breakdown.

What will your part do to make sure young people are engaged in politics? Sarah Trott, aged 13.

A good political education at school is essential and I know it works because I have taught citizenship for many years. Once young people understand how politics works and the jargon around politics they begin to understand the stories in the news.and they begin to enjoy following them. I have seen it happen year on year. Furthermore, as we have seen in Scotland, if the voting age is lowered to 16, young people will be more likely to pay attention.

TOMORROW: Labour candidate Simon Bowkett