Those vying to be the first North East mayor should be “big and bold” with their plans, a Labour candidate has insisted – after the campaign kicked off with a string of ambitious promises.
Kim McGuinness officially launched her bid to secure Labour’s nomination for next year’s historic mayoral election on Monday. The Northumbria Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC) has made eradicating child poverty in the region the focal point of her pitch to party members, with the North East having the worst rates anywhere in the country.
It comes after her main rival for the candidacy, current North of Tyne mayor Jamie Driscoll, last week pledged that he would end unemployment if he were elected. Speaking to the Local Democracy Reporting Service at Equinor’s South Shields operations base for the Dogger Bank Wind Farm, Ms McGuinness said that candidates were right to dream big for what can be achieved with the region’s £4.2bn devolution deal.
