As it happened: East Midlands mayoral candidates debate

We gave Labour candidate Claire Ward 15 seconds to tell us what she would fix as mayor.

We gave Conservative candidate Ben Bradley 15 seconds to tell us what he would fix as mayor.

We gave Liberal Democrat candidate Helen Tamblyn-Saville 15 seconds to tell us what she would fix as mayor.

We gave independent candidate Matthew Relf 15 seconds to tell us what he would fix as mayor.

We gave Green Party candidate Frank Adlington-Stringer 15 seconds to tell us what he would fix as mayor.

We gave Reform UK candidate Alan Graves 15 seconds to tell us what he would fix as mayor.

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One question - asked of some of the candidates during the debate - was if a tram network could be used to connect Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire.

Reform UK candidate Alan Graves said it would be "quite nice" to have a tram network that connected the two areas but added that more rural areas also needed improved transport links as well.

Labour's Claire Ward said there would need to be a business case for any tram extension, so it connected areas with new businesses and new homes.

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The mayor will have the power to raise money through a mayoral precept. In short, it's more council tax on your bill.

But any candidate who says they're going to introduce it on day one might as well as concede right now.

Take Greater Manchester. The authority, under Andy Burnham, has been up and running for a number of years and didn't introduce one straight away. Residents in a Band A property pay about £21 a year extra under the mayoral precept.

This funds things like a £2 bus fare cap, a project to provide a bed and additional mental health support to the homeless, and its bus franchising model - the Bee Network - to have proper control of buses, mirroring London.

Don't expect the elected mayor to announce it any time soon, but it's one to look out for in the future. Up the road, in South Yorkshire, they've had a mayor since 2018 and there's no "mayor tax"... yet.

Whoever takes on the role of being the first East Midlands mayor has a big job on their hands to bring everyone together.

Their patch will cover two major cities, hundreds of rural villages and hundreds of thousands of constituents.

When asked how big of a job being mayor is, Frank Adlington-Stringer, of the Green Party, says he will lead with "compassion" and will support every person in the region.

Conservative candidate Ben Bradley (pictured below) says the authority is replacing a different body, so is not adding another layer of bureaucracy. He says he is "well placed" to understand the communities the new role will cover.

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Alan Graves, of Reform UK, says that both Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire can "fight the government" by voting for him, and added: "We don't want this."

Independent candidate Matthew Relf says he does not see a divide between Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire either, and wants to work with the democratically-elected councils to steer the direction of the new authority.

Helen Tamblyn-Saville, of the Liberal Democrats, says she will have a "grassroots up" approach if made mayor. She says she will work with councils to make sure everybody gets their "fair share".

Concluding the debate, Labour candidate Claire Ward (pictured below) says she will launch a "Visit East Midlands" campaign to "unite the region", and showcase "every gem that we have here".

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Even if you haven't driven over any potholes recently, you probably will have read about them on a campaign leaflet.

Politicians say it's one of the things they hear people complain about most on the doorstep, so it's no great surprise they're coming up a lot in this election.

But there has been a question mark over whether or not the mayor can even spend their £1.5bn transport budget on fixing them.

That's because, while the new combined authority will take on responsibility for transport, they won't be responsible for highways - and yes there is a difference.

The government has, however, confirmed the mayor can spend the money on road repairs, if that's what they think the priority is, but their plans will have to be approved by the Department for Transport.

In other words, don't expect those potholes to disappear overnight.

Whoever the new mayor will be, they will have access to a pot of money to build housing on urban brownfield sites.

Locals say it is hard to get on the housing ladder at the moment, and that social housing stock is dwindling.

Independent Matthew Relf says he will look at consolidating the current planning rules that benefit developers, who he says are creating "big profitable houses" rather than the affordable homes that are needed.

Reform UK candidate Alan Graves (pictured below) says the issue of housing is a "very difficult subject". He adds the issue of building on brownfield sites is still "a problem".

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Helen Tamblyn-Saville, of the Liberal Democrats, says the new mayor needs to think about homes that people can live in, rather than ones that benefit the developer. She says the region needs more affordable and social housing.

Labour candidate, Claire Ward, says housing is a "big issue" in the East Midlands, adding that she wants to open up brownfield sites for development. She also says she wants to launch a "mayor's taskforce" to tackle rough sleeping.

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Frank Adlington-Stringer, of the Green Party, says he has "made it clear" that he will end homelessness as mayor. He also says he wants to build "really decent housing in the right places" to help young people get on to the property ladder.

Conservative candidate Ben Bradley says cities in the East Midlands are being underdeveloped but that rural areas and some greenbelt sites need to be protected amid the push to build more housing.

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Ask any local politician what's holding the East Midlands economy back and transport – or a lack thereof - will be high on the list.

A recent example I heard from a council leader was that there are a lot of jobs at and near East Midlands Airport, but if you live in Nottingham and don't have a car, you don't have many options to get there.

The mayor will have £1.5bn to spend on improving connectivity across the region – money saved from the cancellation of HS2 beyond Birmingham.

In political terms, transport infrastructure is considered a vote winner because it tends to be tangible and eye-catching, whether it's a new rail line, a bus company, or – whisper it – a tram extension.

So how the victor chooses to spend that money could well be what ends up defining the role.

Issues with bus services, trams and potholes have been raised by members of the public ahead of the second question in the debate on transport.

Addressing their plans on how to get the region moving, all candidates say more money is needed for improve public transport and infrastructure.

Greens candidate, Frank Adlington-Stringer (below), doubles down on his plans to renationalise the area's bus services. He says he will link up public services with active transport, such as walking and cycling.

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Ben Bradley, of the Conservatives, says he has four transport priorities in his manifesto including roads, buses, rail and green transport in rural areas. He says he will deliver a "massive road resurfacing programme" as his first port of call.

Reform's Alan Graves says it would be better if the government "did their job" and spent the money earmarked for the mayor wisely in the first place.

Independent candidate Matthew Relf says Mr Bradley - as the leader of Nottinghamshire County Council - which looks after the roads in the region, could have solved the issue of potholes already. Mr Relf says he is the only candidate that knows "how to fix potholes".

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Liberal Democrat Helen Tamblyn-Saville (pictured above) says she wants to see a "simplified and integrated ticketing system" for all public transport. She says it's important to "get a handle" on potholes because of the risk they cause to drivers and cyclists.

Labour's Claire Ward agrees that integrated ticketing needs to be enforced, and that an active travel system also needs to be improved so people can access public transport to travel across the region.

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Buses, and public transport more generally, will be the cornerstone of any mayoral term.

But what can they actually do? Well, don't expect any drastic change overnight.

Before the mid-1980s, buses were largely run by councils. But deregulation handed the most of England's bus network to private operators.

One power the mayor does have is bringing in a bus franchising system. This will give the mayor the ability to decide how the routes, fares and timetables look, and to reinvest money from profitable bits of the network to less profitable ones.

But it's taken Greater Manchester more than eight years to get their London-style bus operation – the Bee Network – into something tangible.

In this region, it may get tricky to do this across the board - this is down to what happens in Nottingham. The city operates under a municipal bus company, which is similar to franchising.

In response to the first question about the region's economy, and the regeneration of high streets and jobs, the candidates mostly agree that businesses need more help.

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Labour's Claire Ward says she will use the public money made available to the mayor to "bring in more investment in the private sector" to create jobs and help young people gain the education to carry out skilled jobs. She says the region has "fantastic businesses" and wants to see more of them grow.

Helen Tamblyn-Saville, of the Liberal Democrats, says the region needs more apprentices for both young and older people looking to change industry, creating a culture of "lifelong learning" in the East Midlands.

Independent candidate Matthew Relf (pictured below) says the new mayor needs to "supercharge" the support offered to local businesses, which will help create jobs and boost the economy.

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In response to the question on the economy, Reform UK candidate Alan Graves says he plans to abolish the position of mayor to "save taxpayers' money in the long run".

Ben Bradley, of the Conservatives, says he wants to create a renewable fund to invest in projects that help the private sector to make them viable and regenerate town centres.

Green Party candidate Frank Adlington-Stringer says he will get the East Midlands "future ready" by committing to green projects and says he is the only candidate "committed to franchising the buses".

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The election will take place on 2 May, along with local council and police and crime commissioner elections.

It is a first-past-the-post system, so you will have one vote, and the candidate with the most votes wins.

Voters will be asked to show photographic ID at polling stations, such as a passport, driving licence, blue badge or an older person's bus pass.

If you do not have any of these, you can apply for a Voter Authority Certificate by 24 April.

The result is expected to be announced on 3 May.

And who gets to ask the big questions? Well we thought it was pretty important to hear from the people who'll be affected by all of this - so that's you.

We've been out across the new combined authority area and it's your thoughts the candidates here will be reacting to.

There will be four rounds of debate.

First, the economy, then transport, then on to housing and lastly, how big a job this is.

Each candidate will first have a minute to answer, with the time left at the end of each section for some debate, and we'll rotate who gets to answer first in every section.

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Leicester and Leicestershire will not be joining their East Midlands neighbours under the new mayoral authority.

Ahead of the devolution deal being signed, Leicester City Council decided it was unwilling to join the partnership, with the city's own mayor Sir Peter Soulsby describing the idea of having two elected mayors in the area as "daft".

Both Leicestershire and Rutland were told that alone, they could not be considered as a "functional economic area", and therefore could not join Derby, Derbyshire, Nottingham and Nottinghamshire in a wider deal.