The candidates for the three Medway constituencies will be answering questions live on KentOnline this evening at a hustings.
The KM Group and KMTV have teamed up with the Universities at Medway and Maxim PR to present the hustings at its Gillingham campus.
Doors open to the Pilkington Building at 5.30pm, with the first hustings, for the Rochester and Strood constituency, starting at 5.45pm.
After an hour, it will be the turn of candidates for Gillingham and Rainham to face the voters, before the final session at 8.15pm, for the Chatham and Aylesford seat.
The Lib Dems, Greens and Labour have all confirmed their attendance, but Conservative hopefuls Kelly Tolhurst and Nathan Gamester have said they will not be taking part in hustings during the campaign, while Rehman Chisti said he was concentrating on engaging with people directly.
Candidates will have the opportunity to make their pitch to voters, be asked about key topics for their area, and then will face audience-submitted questions.
See below for key points of the discussion.
Live updates to follow
17:45 - Hustings begin
The candidates for the first of the three constituencies tonight, Rochester and Strood, are setting out why they think they deserve to represent the area in parliament.
First, Daniel Dabin, for Reform UK, says he’s chosen to stand because of the “utter mess” of the past 30 years.
He says there are levels of economic vandalism due to policies from both major parties and he felt he had to try and do something about it.
Graham Colley, Lib Dems, a local solicitor in Rochester, says he too has seen the chaos which has been affecting the country since Thatcher.
He says there should be a combination of individual enterprise and government planning to give everyone a fair deal.
Lauren Edwards, Labour, says there is an opportunity to turn the corner and says Kelly Tolhurst isn’t here this evening to defend her poor record.
She says Labour has fixed Tory messes before and can do again and she wants to bring pride back to Rochester and Strood.
She will fight for investment from central government and says she will be a stronger voice for Rochester and Strood than there has been for years.
Cat Jamieson, Green party candidate, says her party is the only one willing to tackle all of the challenges facing the country at this moment.
It’s not afraid to be bold, she says, and she says all issues are interconnected and need to be addressed in a joined up way.
She says she came to Medway for work in her twenties and has worked with many groups across the Towns, but she has stayed because of the fabulous people.
17:55
On the first question on how you assure residents you will stand up for them, Cat Jamieson says she has learnt through her time as a Green party member of working at the grassroots level.
Lauren Edwards says her role on Medway Council as a councillor has enabled her to connect with residents and understand the issues they face.
She also says, as a cabinet member, she understands the working of government and will be able to make the most of a Labour government.
Graham Colley says the Lib Dems are “pavement politicians” who liase with real people out in the world.
He says becoming a Lib Dem MP is difficult and they only get there because of local reputation.
Daniel Dabin says there are lots of issues which need to be tackled and he says local taxes are too high.
He also says energy costs are too high and should focus on using Britain’s own resources rather than imports.
He says Reform UK will hold whichever government to account because ordinary people are paying the price.
17:59
An online questioner asks about young people trusting in politics and becoming engaged in the political process.
Lauren Edwards says it’s vitally important to involve young people in politics and it’s understandable why trust has fallen in politicians.
She says she became involved because she was angry about the way Boris Johnson and Matt Hancock were acting and she says she will restore trust by being truthful and open if she is elected.
Graham Colley says you have to look at the underlying factors and says the constitutional system we have is divesting young people from politics.
He says the lack of proportional representation encourages Labour and Tories (he calls Tweedle Dum and Tweedle Dee) to just play politics.
Daniel Dabin says he will rebuld trust by doing a good job. He says it is not acceptable to maintain the status quo.
He says the country needs leadership and vision and has been lacking for a long time.
“Do a good job, problem solved” he says.
Cat Jamieson says she’s not surprised young people are uninterested in politics because of all the scandals which we have seen over the past few years.
She says the penalty for politicians who break the rules should be harsher because they are supposed to be setting the example.
She says no one has taken accountability for the lies from Brexit.
She says the Green Party would have a ‘fair politics’ act which would bring about more transparency and higher standards.
18:04
The first audience question is abou
