Candidates may have a tough job convincing people to vote
Hugh Casswell
Political reporter, BBC Radio Nottingham
When politicians talk about the new combined authority,
you'll mostly hear them waxing lyrical about the opportunities and investment
it will create – but actually its existence being a good thing isn't a settled
matter.
One candidate is standing on the basis he'd abolish the role, and
others say they're in favour of devolution in general, but don't think this is
the best way to do it.
And the responses from a public consultation last year were
lukewarm at best, with 45% disagreeing with the proposals for governance, to 42%
who agreed.
If that kind of apathy is reflected on polling day,
candidates may have a job on their hands convincing people to vote at all, let
alone vote for them specifically.
East Midlands mayoral election: Meet the candidates
Will Jefford
BBC East Midlands
Ahead of the debate, we have compiled short profiles of each of the six candidates (listed alphabetically), which can be found by following the links in their names.
BBCCopyright: BBC
Standing for Reform UK is Alan Graves, a 61-year-old sales director who believes there is no consensus for a regional mayor, and would scrap the position in his first 100 days.
BBCCopyright: BBC
Standing for the Conservative Party is Ben Bradley, the current leader of Nottinghamshire County Council and the Conservative MP for Mansfield. One of his priorities would be to "deliver a major road resurfacing investment".
BBCCopyright: BBC
The Labour candidate is Claire Ward, who served as an MP under Tony Blair and Gordon Brown. She says the mayor will have to "get a grip" of transport in the East Midlands.
BBCCopyright: BBC
Standing for the Green Party is Frank Adlington-Stringer, a 26-year-old self-employed designer who says the area can be the powerhouse of the "green industrial revolution".
BBCCopyright: BBC
The candidate for the Liberal Democrats is Helen Tamblyn-Saville, a former district councillor who would declare a climate emergency in her first action as mayor.
BBCCopyright: BBC
Matt Relf, a local businessman in Ashfield, is running as an independent. He says the mayor should be "free of influence from London".
Get in touch: Join in the mayoral debate
Will Jefford
BBC East Midlands
You can join in the debate by contacting us.
You can contact us on our BBC Nottingham and BBC Derby platforms.
A new £1.14bn devolution deal for the region required the
new mayoral role to be created.
Some powers will be moved from Westminster to the elected
leader for Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire.
The deal to create the East Midlands Combined County
Authority (EMCCA) was signed by Derby City Council, Derbyshire County Council,
Nottingham City Council and Nottinghamshire County Council in November 2022.
The authority will work alongside the four councils, with the
new mayor acting as a figurehead to champion the region and lobby government
for support.
Welcome to our coverage
Good morning and welcome to our coverage of a debate ahead of the first-ever East Midlands mayoral election.
This morning, we'll be hearing from all the candidates who are hoping to become the region's first elected mayor.
We'll bring you all the latest updates and analysis right here as it happens.
Live Reporting
Will Jefford, Matt Taylor and Alex Smith
All times stated are UK
Candidates may have a tough job convincing people to vote
Hugh Casswell
Political reporter, BBC Radio Nottingham
When politicians talk about the new combined authority, you'll mostly hear them waxing lyrical about the opportunities and investment it will create – but actually its existence being a good thing isn't a settled matter.
One candidate is standing on the basis he'd abolish the role, and others say they're in favour of devolution in general, but don't think this is the best way to do it.
And the responses from a public consultation last year were lukewarm at best, with 45% disagreeing with the proposals for governance, to 42% who agreed.
If that kind of apathy is reflected on polling day, candidates may have a job on their hands convincing people to vote at all, let alone vote for them specifically.
East Midlands mayoral election: Meet the candidates
Will Jefford
BBC East Midlands
Ahead of the debate, we have compiled short profiles of each of the six candidates (listed alphabetically), which can be found by following the links in their names.
Standing for Reform UK is Alan Graves, a 61-year-old sales director who believes there is no consensus for a regional mayor, and would scrap the position in his first 100 days.
Standing for the Conservative Party is Ben Bradley, the current leader of Nottinghamshire County Council and the Conservative MP for Mansfield. One of his priorities would be to "deliver a major road resurfacing investment".
The Labour candidate is Claire Ward, who served as an MP under Tony Blair and Gordon Brown. She says the mayor will have to "get a grip" of transport in the East Midlands.
Standing for the Green Party is Frank Adlington-Stringer, a 26-year-old self-employed designer who says the area can be the powerhouse of the "green industrial revolution".
The candidate for the Liberal Democrats is Helen Tamblyn-Saville, a former district councillor who would declare a climate emergency in her first action as mayor.
Matt Relf, a local businessman in Ashfield, is running as an independent. He says the mayor should be "free of influence from London".
Get in touch: Join in the mayoral debate
Will Jefford
BBC East Midlands
You can join in the debate by contacting us.
You can contact us on our BBC Nottingham and BBC Derby platforms.
BBC Nottingham: Facebook, X, email or WhatsApp.
BBC Derby: Facebook, X, email or WhatsApp.
How has this come about?
Gavin Bevis
BBC News, East Midlands
A new £1.14bn devolution deal for the region required the new mayoral role to be created.
Some powers will be moved from Westminster to the elected leader for Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire.
The deal to create the East Midlands Combined County Authority (EMCCA) was signed by Derby City Council, Derbyshire County Council, Nottingham City Council and Nottinghamshire County Council in November 2022.
The authority will work alongside the four councils, with the new mayor acting as a figurehead to champion the region and lobby government for support.
Welcome to our coverage
Good morning and welcome to our coverage of a debate ahead of the first-ever East Midlands mayoral election.
This morning, we'll be hearing from all the candidates who are hoping to become the region's first elected mayor.
We'll bring you all the latest updates and analysis right here as it happens.
And, of course, you can also hear the debate on BBC Radio Nottingham and BBC Radio Derby.
The debate itself, which was recorded on Tuesday afternoon, will be broadcast from about 11:00 BST.