Restore Britain name Greater Manchester mayoral candidate

The Restore Britain party has named a campaigner against child sexual exploitation as its candidate for the Greater Manchester mayoral election.

Former mental health nurse Marlon West will stand in the contest which was triggered by Andy Burnham's parliamentary by-election success in Makerfield last week.

West became a prominent activist on the issue of child grooming gangs after his daughter, Scarlett, was targeted and raped, and the pair published a book on their experiences - In Plain Sight.

He said: "I have seen what good public services look like and I have seen what happens when institutions fail the people they are supposed to protect."

The election, triggered automatically by rules stating the mayor cannot be a sitting MP, will take place on 30 July and will involve about two million potential voters.

Restore Britain's leader and Great Yarmouth MP Rupert Lowe said West "knows the city and knows its people".

"Greater Manchester deserves better leadership than it has had," he said.

"Marlon has already proved he fights for this city when it matters. Now he wants to run it."

Restore said West would "push to attract genuine business investment, cut wasteful public spending including on the GMCA's own bloated administration, protect greenfield land from developers, and overhaul a transport network that has failed commuters for years".

The only other confirmed candidate so far is the Green Party's Geraldine Coggins, a serving Trafford Councillor.

A full list of the announced candidates standing in the mayoral election can be found here.

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