Election 2015: Candidates' Kitchen Confidential

They have three sons: Gawain, a professional chess grandmaster based in London and married to Sue from New Zealand; Rory, a musician, comedian and performance poet in Belfast and Aidan, chair of the Young Greens NI, who is completing his final year at the Erne Integrated College. She studied at Cambridge and York universities, has worked as a solicitor and teacher and has written eight books to date, with another one on the way.

Q.Which party would you back in a coalition situation, Labour or Conservative, and why?

I am reminded of Treebeard’s comment in Lord of the Rings, “I am not altogether on anybody’s side, because nobody is altogether on my side, if you understand me: nobody cares for the woods as I care for them, not even Elves nowadays.” (Not that an Elvish coalition is likely to be on the table at Westminster, I’m afraid.) The Green Party has a clear vision for the future we want to bring about: a fairer, cleaner, more compassionate society that works for the common good of our neighbours, our children and our grandchildren.  Q.If elected, what specific actions would you take to improve wages, health services and the economy in Fermanagh and South Tyrone?

1. I would work with my Green Party colleagues and like-minded MPs from other parties to make the minimum wage a living wage and to outlaw zero-hour contracts for employees who do not want them.

2. I would work for investment in the NHS as it should be: free at the point of use, universal, about prevention as well as treatment, and I would fight creeping privatisation, especially that threatened by the TTIP treaty.  3. I would work for investment and support for sustainable businesses, especially tourism, responsible agriculture and to make the most of the fantastic resources, skills and opportunities which we have in the vital and growing area of renewable energies.

Q.How would you alleviate the impact of welfare reform on Fermanagh South Tyrone where there are 9,500 DLA claimants?

Steven Agnew MLA, the leader of the Green Party in Northern Ireland, dealt with this directly in one of his 26 proposed amendments to the Welfare Bill in February.  He proposed that work capability assessments should not be outsourced to the private companies whose irrational decisions in England and Wales have caused so much suffering and even tragic deaths.  Sadly this amendment was vetoed along with the other 25, including the sensible and fair proposal that newly disabled people shouldn’t have to wait a year before receiving their benefits. We in the Green Party will continue to fight for the rights of disabled people, and those suffering from severe and chronic conditions, to receive the help and support which they need.  We will work for this at grassroots level, in the Northern Ireland Assembly and in Westminster, where we will work closely with MPs from our sister parties, like the inspirational Green Party MP Caroline Lucas.

Q.What is your message to the 30 per cent of locals who did not cast their vote in the last Westminster election; how can you inspire them?

I understand entirely why many people did not vote in the last Westminster election and in those which came before.  The message from the oppositional parties has far too often been ‘vote to keep the other one out’ rather than for any positive vision of hope and progress.  This time, however, there is a new choice for the people of Fermanagh and South Tyrone.  By voting for the Green Party vision of the common good, of a fairer, cleaner and better world for us and for all our children, we can send a powerful message of what we really want.  The eyes of the world will be on Fermanagh and South Tyrone on the morning of 8th May – let’s give them something good to talk about.

  Q.How do you think St Angelo Airport could be better used to Femanagh and South Tyrone’s advantage? Is this something you will focus on if elected?

 Transport links between Fermanagh and the rest of Ireland, Britain and beyond need to be improved, both to help tourism and economic development and to allow local people to travel more easily. It is worth exploring the ways in which the St Angelo Airport could play a part in this process.  It will be more important, however, to develop sustainable infrastructure projects such as the reinstatement of the railway network, including Enniskillen as a major hub, as it once was.  This would benefit both present and future generations, and would continue to do so through the growing challenges of climate change and peak oil.  In the shorter term, simple changes such as the introduction of a genuinely express, fast, comfortable, reliable and 24 hour coach service would revolutionise the experience of commuters, holiday-makers, students and shoppers alike.

Q.If elected how will you protect Northern Ireland’s CAP reform from a ‘rebalance’ with Scotland?

The Green Party want to see more fundamental reform than the current changes, under which large landowners such as the Prince of Wales continue to benefit enormously while small sustainable farms are put under more and more pressure.  I would fight for a system that rewards responsible stewardship of our land, decent treatment of livestock and production of the healthy wholesome food that we all need.    Q.Where do you stand on the Portora/Collegiate debate in Fermanagh?

 The Green Party principle of grassroots democracy means that decisions should be taken as closely as possible to those most affected by them.  Like many top-down decisions here, the merger approval showed a disregard for local people and their informed views.  I would seek a review of this decision with proper consultation and input from those most affected, including students, staff, parents, governors and the local community.

Q.The elderly appear to be severely disadvantaged in drastic savings measures the Western Trust is having to make. What are your plans to help this particular section of our population?

 A friend of mine recently approached the organisers of a foodbank in Fermanagh and asked which items they particularly needed, so that she could donate them.  “Oatmeal” was among the answers.  My friend was surprised.  “I didn’t think young families ate porridge these days,” she commented.  “It isn’t for the young families,” came the reply. “It’s for the elderly.”  I found this deeply shocking.  This is the generation who lived through the war, and all its hardships and economies, who grew up with rationing and the tightest of budgets, who know how to live frugally and to make every penny count.  And they are self-reliant, enduring and proud of it; they wouldn’t ask for charity unless they were really desperate. If even these among our neighbours are being forced to ask for help from foodbanks, something has gone very wrong.     Q. Where do you stand on plans to close Enniskillen’s Courthouse?

 As a former solicitor, who dealt with litigation and family law, I know how important access to justice is, both for individuals and for the wider community.  Closing Enniskillen’s Courthouse would mean that people already in incredibly stressful circumstances would have to travel long distances, with poor public transport, to unfamiliar surroundings and would increase the costs of support and representation.  I am thinking especially of those, for example, who are the victims of domestic violence, whose lives have already been torn apart and who rely on the support of overstretched and underfunded services.  The closure of the courthouse is a short-sighted and thoughtless proposal, and its real costs would far outweigh any short-term savings.

  Q.What’s been your most embarrassing moment to date?

Where to start?  As I cycle and walk all year round, including on the icy days, I’m well accustomed to falling off and over, sometimes with quite a substantial audience!

Q.If you were stranded on a desert island, what three items could you not live without?

1. Something to write with.

2. Something to write on.

3. Something to make a decent pillow (I have a little arthritis in my neck.) Q. Describe a moment in your life that has defined you.

Last summer I was asked to represent the Green Party at a public meeting in Belcoo to discuss the fracking situation. Both Steven Agnew and Ross Brown were away, so I was the next on the list. It was really the first time that I’d done anything like that, and I was terrified.  As I stood up to make my opening statement, all I  could see my arm shaking to and fro.  But as I answered each of the questions put to me by the audience members, I realised that it was going to be all right.  I knew my stuff – after three years of working daily on the frack-free campaign, that was hardly surprising – and the audience were delighted and enthusiastic.  They recognised that I, and the Green Party were on their side; that we understood and shared their concerns, and that we would do everything we could to prevent Fermanagh from being fracked.  The response that I received, both on the night and in the subsequent weeks and months, was overwhelming and, for me, life-changing. The message was strengthened a few months later, after the tragic death of my friend and fellow blow-in Anita Mukherjee.  Anita could scarcely have come further, but could not possibly have been more warmly loved. I owe it to Anita’s memory to follow her example and do my very best to repay our welcome.

  Q.What are your strengths?

I think I’m quite intelligent, creative and thoughful; I work hard and get on well with others.  The great strength that I have in this election is the fantastic support and expertise of Green Party members here in Fermanagh and across Northern Ireland.  With their experience of working to achieve equality and fairness, protect our environment and bring about change for the common good, I always have someone with whom to share questions and ideas.

  Q. What are your weaknesses?

 I get a bit anxious from time to time, worrying that I haven’t done enough or that I might have overlooked something.  Fortunately my family, good friends or a few minutes of quiet reflection are usually enough to reassure me.

Finally: Why should anyone vote for you?

 Many people here know me from my work with the Fermanagh Churches Forum and the Fermanagh Fracking Awareness Network.  They know that I do what I set out to do, and when I make a promise I keep it.  Many know that it was only the Green Party of Northern Ireland which opposed fracking here from the beginning, whole-heartedly and consistently, and will go on doing so until we achieve a complete ban.  Many people have heard about the fantastic work that Caroline Lucas, our first Green Party MP has done in Westminster over the past five years, impressing all, even her opponents, with her integrity, energy, courage and intelligence.