Dave Gaskell - Reform Kingsthorpe South
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00:00Hi, my name's Dave Gaskell. I'm now councillor for Kingshawp South.
00:05Hi Dave, how are you feeling now you've won that season?
00:07I'm excited, very keen to get going and making changes.
00:11What kind of changes do you have?
00:12Well, a lot of the changes will have to result on what we do when we go in and have a look at the finances,
00:17review what's been, any expenditure and things like that,
00:19and then possibly look at reassigning finances to the services that are needed most importantly.
00:25So, at the moment I've got no insight to that.
00:30So, all I can do, I can't make any promises, all I can do is just try and work together as a team,
00:36with all candidates across all parties, to review finances, free up some money and get it to the places where it's needed.
00:44Where is it needed?
00:45Well, obviously, I don't want to sound like a scratch record with the potholes and things like that,
00:50but there's a lot of, the way, it's just presiding in better services.
00:57My biggest gripe, my one, is waste and why we're reducing waste and you're paying more money,
01:02your council tax is going up, but you're getting less services and things like that.
01:05There are other areas which I don't really want to go to in the moment because I don't know too much about it,
01:09but my wife, for example, she's coming on, hopefully she'll get elected as well,
01:15and then between the two of us and Caroline, we've come a formidable team, you know, amongst that.
01:20But as for local, there's a few projects we've got already lined up with locals that we're interested in doing
01:26because we're part of our canvassing, we're speaking to people, listening to people and being available for them.
01:31And that's one of our important things that we want to do, is be available for the people who elected us.
01:35Are you surprised we won your seat of the Conservatives?
01:38We knew it was going to be tight.
01:39Well, there was a mixture.
01:40Obviously, the seats reduced from three down to two, and obviously, the strong contestant was Harry.
01:46And I've seen Harry in action on the planning committee and things like that,
01:51and he's been an excellent councillor, things like that.
01:54And I think, you know, it's politics, you know, we've got to move on.
01:57But hopefully, if I do half a good job of what Harry did and things like that,
02:02I'll be more than happy sort of thing for the first year.
02:04But we've got to see it.
02:05It's all new to us.
02:07And I'm just looking forward to working with everyone,
02:10and especially with lots of different people and getting things done, you know,
02:12and doing the best things for Northampton, you know, and Northamptonshire,
02:16not just Northamptonshire town itself, you know.
02:19But obviously, the local people, you know, for Kingshaw South and surrounding areas are my priorities, really.
02:25And what are your thoughts on reform success so far?
02:30I think it just shows basically higher up what the country's feeling.
02:34And I think that's shown throughout the whole populace,
02:37especially with all the results around the country.
02:39So people are obviously not happy with what's going on up top.
02:42Various parties, either Labour and Conservative,
02:45if you look at the moment, it's Conservative that's lost most seats.
02:47So with that, so, yeah, so it's got to be change.
02:54And hopefully we're the start of it.
02:56And in terms of when you've been out on your campaign,
02:58canvassing with local residents,
02:59what kind of issues have they brought up to you about the Kingshaw South?
03:02A lot of it is access to the various schools there.
03:06And because of where the location of the schools have been placed,
03:09they've got less access and things like that.
03:11And there's also areas where, it sounds like a little petty at times,
03:16but overhanging branches coming from council houses
03:18and private properties trying to do something about it,
03:21but there's nothing happening.
03:23You know, the council aren't reacting to that.
03:24And these branches are actually leaning on telegraph lines
03:26and bringing internet lines down for people who want to work from home
03:29and just having to call out, you know, get it repaired all the time
03:32and the council won't cut the trees.
03:34Whichever, there's little things like that.
03:37But I want to get involved as well with little garden fates and things like that
03:40because we don't see that.
03:41I spoke to a lady in St David's and she says,
03:43we don't ever see councillors at our garden fates.
03:45Why not? I thought that was a normal.
03:46I thought that's what you had to do.
03:48Well, not that you had to do, but, you know,
03:50I thought it was the thing that you should do.
03:52We know that there's an issue with littering and flighting.
03:54So is that something that you're going to put as a top priority?
03:58It would be a priority, yeah.
03:59How I would do it, I don't know.
04:01I've got my own ideas on how I'd like to do it,
04:03but whether we'd be able to do it or not
04:04with what funding we've got available.
04:06What are those ideas, sorry?
04:08You put me on...
04:09Crushing vans.
04:10Sorry?
04:10Crushing vans like here, Simon says, or...?
04:12No, no, no, no.
04:13This is local stuff.
04:14It's like, why are we sending out a booking to get a lorry
04:18to go out and pick up rubbish in one area
04:20and then he travels to the other side of the town
04:21to pick up another one that's on his checklist?
04:23Why can't he go out to that place, have a look round
04:25and pick any other rubbish that's been flight-tipped?
04:27Why come backwards and forwards and things like that?
04:29You're wasting mileage there and fuel and things like that.
04:31People are going about green and all that carbon footprint.
04:34You're there going backwards and forwards with exhaust fumes.
04:36Just because you're getting tickets in the box and things like that,
04:39OK, the job's coming, go over there.
04:40The next job's on the other side of the town.
04:42You know.
04:43Fly-tipping itself.
04:44Me, personally, whether it's happening or not,
04:46I'd like to open up all skips,
04:47whether it's, you know, either free to dispose of your rubbish
04:50because they're charging people all the time
04:52because, surely, it might cost more money for the council,
04:54but, of course, it's less.
04:56You'd save on fly-tipping.
04:58So.
05:00Great.
05:00That's good, yeah.
05:01Sorry.
05:02modernism.
05:02It's not going to be good, yeah.
05:02Thanks.
05:08You know what I was saying.
05:09Thanks, Dan.
05:10Thanks, Dan.
05:11Thanks, Dan.
05:11Thanks, Dan.
05:14Thanks, Dan.