North Yorkshire mayor candidate: Paul Haslam

Independent Paul Haslam is one of six candidates campaigning to be mayor of York and North Yorkshire

Paul Haslam is the independent North Yorkshire councillor for the Bilton and Nidd Gorge division.

He resigned from the Conservatives to run as an Independent candidate in the mayoral election

Mr Haslam is the council’s climate change champion and chairs the Transport for the North scrutiny committee.

He says he is free from party politics

Mr Haslam says his main advantage as an Independent candidate is being "free from party shackles".

He says he is committed to getting more money for North Yorkshire and “fighting for the area's best interests".

The area needs a unique transport solution, he says

Mr Haslam wants a service that is “bespoke” to North Yorkshire that balances both the urban and rural geography of the area.

He is committed to one ticket for travelling through the combined area and increasing rural services.

The candidate also wants to prioritise communication and accuracy of services plus has an idea of combining deliveries with bus services in rural areas.

Tackling violence against woman and girls is a priority

He wants the police to be rated outstanding at the next inspection and wants to ensure money is invested in the fire service.

His key pledge is to invest in services and prevention measures to combat violence against women and girls.

Mr Haslam also wants to tackle anti social behaviour by using the additional £1m from government to target hot spots and to look at cyber crime and online grooming.

He wants to see more energy-efficient housing

Mr Haslam says he would retrofit homes into affordable homes or build new ones which are properly energy efficient.

This would make them less expensive for people to live in.

He wants new housing developments to help people choose how they get around, either by private car, public transport or walking and cycling.

The candidate also wants new developments to have roads with a default 20mph speed limit.

In his own words