University of Sussex students and staff are being given the opportunity to quiz local council candidates on the future of Brighton and Hove ahead of elections next month.

The University of Sussex and the Politics Society have announced plans to host a debate involving candidates who are standing for election in Brighton and Hove on Thursday 2 May.

Among those scheduled to appear on the debate panel representing their respective local parties will be current Brighton & Hove City Council leader Daniel Yates from the Labour and Cooperative Group and Conservative Cllr Joe Miller, a Sussex alum and currently chairman of the council’s Audit and Standards Committee.

Green Party candidate Hannah Clare, Liberal Democrat candidate Duncan Moore and UKIP’s Nigel Furness have also confirmed their attendance.

The Question Time style panel event will take place on Wednesday 17 April between 4pm and 6pm, in the Fulton A lecture theatre on the University of Sussex campus.

The event is open to all and will give attendees the opportunity to hear from candidates about their proposed policies for the local area and also pose questions to panel members when prompted by the event chair.

The Conservatives currently have the most councillors in Brighton and Hove with 21, while the ruling Labour and Cooperative Group have 19 and the Green Group have 11, with two councillors sitting as Independents.
Overall control of the council has changed hands at every Brighton and Hove election since 2003.

The panel discussion will be chaired by Peter Gallizzi, a third-year Politics and International Relations student and chair of the University of Sussex Politics Society.

He said: “The city council elections are likely to be a very close-run race again this year and so every vote has the potential to have a significant impact on the outcome.

“The election result will have a huge bearing on many everyday services that students and other city residents use so we hope that by hosting this event a fortnight ahead of polling day, it will be the perfect opportunity for voters to have a clearer idea about what each party represents and what their vision for the city’s future is.”

Anyone interested in attending the event can reserve their seat at this Eventbrite page and can also submit a question in advance by completing the relevant box on the sign-up form. A selection of these questions will be put to the candidates on the evening.

Attendees are asked to bring their Eventbrite confirmation email with them when they arrive at the venue.