Roland Strauss is the Green Party candidate for Stray Ward in the Harrogate Town Council Elections.
Questions to Roland:
What’s your connection to Harrogate ?
I have been living in Harrogate for 11 years and working in the local hospital for 16 years.
The role of the Harrogate Town Council isn’t fully defined, what would would you like to see a town council do ?
To grow into an entity for Harrogate’s citizens to be proud of, gathering all the historical achievements and in addition to preserving them, use the wealth of experience to prepare Harrogate for the challenges of the future. This challenge offers an opportunity to use the traditional focus of a spa town on wellbeing to continue promoting healthy living in all its aspects,
What do you see as the main challenges for the town council ?
To establish sufficient independence from North Yorkshire Council enabling it to make decisions that have Harrogate interests at heart and at the same time avoiding incompatibilities in issues such as planning regulations.
What do you see as the main gains for the people of Harrogate ?
People will feel better represented by a Town Council , but more importantly their interests should be better realised if all the Town Council members live in or have a close relationship to the town.
What else do you believe people should know about your or what you believe ?
I believe we live in a changing world in which many of our natural resources are threatened, and with it, our well being. I feel we have a moral duty to do all we can to preserve our nature and ecosystems for the coming generations. I see the challenge to adapt as an opportunity – nationally as well as locally – to develop into a truly sustainable future society
Should a town councillor be voted for based on party or personality?
The connection to a community seems to matter much more to the people in local election, as the many successful independent candidates in local elections demonstrate. If somebody knows and is known and trusted in their community, then that matters more to people than the party affiliation – so personality.
