Liberal Democrats select Jayne Phoenix as the Parliamentary candidate to contest new Bridlington and the Wolds seat

The party selected Councillor Jayne Phoenix in a bid to secure the seat which will be vacated by Sir Greg Knight.

Councillor Phoenix represents Bridlington North ward on East Riding of Yorkshire Council and as a prominent campaigner to improve health services in this area.

She said: “I am pleased and proud to have been chosen by my Party to stand as a candidate for the area that I love and where I live.

"The big issue that I have been working on for almost 2two years now is the inequality of health provision in our town.

"We have a primary care system where, if you move to Bridlington from elsewhere you can sign up to one of the two practices in the town.

"Those who live here who have been put in a practice that was not of their choosing are unable to move from one to the other if they so wish.

"I think we need to be told the truth about why patients aren’t all treated the same.

"I have been asking the Integrated Care Board, who are tasked with decision making regarding health services, and in particular Bridlington Hospital, for a plan for our hospital.

"I'd like to see services returned to the hospital that are not life threatening and I’d also like to see the urgent treatment centre open 24 hours.

“We also have a dental desert here in Bridlington where people are finding it almost impossible to even register with a private dentist.

Some people travel 80 miles back to the cities they had been registered in as they have had to keep themselves on the list of the dentist they were registered with before moving here.

"I attend every Health Forum meeting, where members continually bring up these issues.

“I'll also be campaigning for better support for homeless people.

"We managed to help get tough sleepers off the street in lockdown – why has everything just gone back to the way it was?

"Plus I'd like to see wholesale planning reform with local authorities having much more power to make decisions locally.

"As a councillor we can influence and ask questions. MPs really have far more power to change things.”