Candidates bid for youth vote in student hotspot

Taking part in the hustings, Lucy Hart and Amara Relf, said women's safety should be high on the agenda

The new parliamentary constituency of Leeds Central and Headingley has one of the youngest populations in the country.

Taking in three universities, it covers the city centre to the south and the student-heavy areas of Headingley and Hyde Park to the north.

About two fifths (42%) of the population in the constituency is aged between 16 and 24, according to the Office for National Statistics.

But there are fears that many young people will not vote at the general election on 4 July.

BBC News spoke to students at a hustings organised by Leeds University Union to find out what they thought politicians needed to do to convince them to vote.

The Leeds Central and Headingley parliamentary constituency is home to three universities

Among those who had chosen to spend a warm June evening talking politics were Amara Relf and Lucy Hart.

Amara, 23, said she was studying law and social justice at the University of Leeds.

She said she thought the politicians needed to be talking more about things that mattered to young people.

"Parties need to represent us more and talk about issues that actually affect students," she said.

She specifically highlighted "the NHS, the cost of living crisis, women's safety and trans issues" as things politicians should be paying more attention to.

In fact, concerns over violence against women was a big focus of the Leeds University hustings.

Many students asked the candidates taking part what measures they would put in place to ensure their safety.

Lucy, 20, an international relations student, agreed that was a major issue, as well as wanting to hear what the parties would do to help students in the cost of living crisis.

Emily Taburn, the organisers of the hustings, said the main parties should not ignore young people

Meanwhile, for other students at the hustings, the issue of housing was a big concern.

One student asked the candidates taking part what they would do to improve the condition of student houses.

Emily Taburn, Leeds University Union's affairs and communications officer, who was the event's organisers and host, said: "I am currently living in a pretty horrible student house.

"There's mould all over the walls, the ceiling leaks when it rains, and it really feels like there's no one to go to about that."

Tom Appleton, 20, was another student who felt housing should be higher up the agenda.

He said politicians should bring in rules to prevent students having to pay for accommodation while they were home during the holidays.

Also taking part in the hustings was Hannah Catterall, 22, who agreed that the major parties ignored the needs of young people.

"Talking about issues that really impact our future - that is what I would like to see change," she said.

A recent graduate and the current union wellbeing officer, Hannah said she would like to see politicians focused more on subjects such as mental health, climate and the situation in Gaza.

At the hustings in Leeds, Hannah Catterall and Tom Appleton said they wanted things to change

Attending the hustings, Alex Sobel, the Labour candidate for Leeds Central and Headingley, told those taking part that his party would prioritise rent reform and recognised the importance of the "on-campus" experience for students and concerns over funding for the university sector.

Louie Fulton, the Trade Unionist and Socialist Coalition candidate, pledged to support "student-led" campaigns such as protests about Gaza.

George Sykes, a Liberal Democrat candidate who stood in for Leeds Central and Headingley candidate Chris Howley, promised his party would reinstate the Erasmus study exchange programme in the EU.

Chris Foren, the Green Party candidate, said his party would abolish tuition fees and increase protection for tenants in the rental market.

Owais Rajput, candidate for the Workers Party of Great Britain, said his party wanted to offer "free" higher education.

Following the event, the SDP's Rob Walker told the BBC his party would bring in shared tax allowances for couples with children and an increase in housing supply.

The Conservative candidate, Jenny Jackson, and Reform UK's Reggie Way did not attend the hustings and have so far not responded to the BBC's requests for comment.

'Cast aside'

After the event, hustings organiser Emily said she had set it up because she believed students had historically felt "disenfranchised" by most major parties.

"It feels like we've been cast aside a lot of the time," she said.

"I can’t blame students for feeling a little bit apathetic and not really wanting to get involved in politics - but that is a reason more than ever that we should be."

While there was an "assumption" that students and young people did not care, "a lot of them do about major issues", Emily concluded.

The full list of general election candidates for Leeds Central and Headingley is as follows:

• Chris Foren - Green

• Louie Fulton - Trade Unionist and Socialist Coalition

• Chris Howley - Liberal Democrats

• Jenny Jackson - Conservative

• Owais Rajput - Workers Party of Britain

• Alex Sobel - Labour

• Rob Walker - SDP

• Reggie Wray - Reform UK

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