Srid­har Ekam­baram is an Onslow West­ern can­did­ate and gives us his answers, each of which came in under the 25 word lim­it. Check our Elec­tions 2013 sec­tion for all the responses as they come in.

  1. What should be the city council’s role in help­ing home­less people and beg­gars?

Cre­ate jobs so people don’t have to beg and can afford homes. If they are not suit­able for any jobs, provide them with train­ing.

  1. What would you do to make Wel­ling­ton more cycle and ped­es­tri­an friendly?

Invest in infra­struc­ture for safe cyl­ing and walk­ing. Private-pub­lic part­ner­ship is an option.

  1. How do you think traffic flow to the hos­pit­al and air­port should be improved?

Improve pub­lic trans­port with fast, effi­cient and afford­able ser­vice.

  1. What are your views on the sug­ges­tion Wel­ling­ton needs to be “more than just Weta and Gov­ern­ment” – what do you think are Wellington’s strengths?

I agree. Wel­ling­ton has a good uni­ver­sity that can drive green tech innov­a­tion and man­u­fac­tur­ing. Just need good R&D centre.

  1. What will YOU do to get more invest­ment, busi­nesses, and busi­ness con­fid­ence in Wel­ling­ton?

Dis­cuss with the busi­ness own­ers to find prac­tic­al solu­tions.

  1. What does Wel­ling­ton need more of, and what does Wel­ling­ton need less of?

Needs more green jobs, pub­lic trans­port, walk­ing and cyc­ling. Less of per­son­al car trips.

  1. What would your city coun­cil provide for chil­dren and young people?

More lib­rar­ies, recre­ation­al facil­it­ies, youth pro­grams, sci­ence and innov­a­tion com­pet­i­tions.

  1. What steps would you take to encour­age civic engage­ment?

Spend more time with res­id­ents and con­stitu­ents and work with them, not just work for them.

  1. Tell us about your per­son­al earth­quake plan / What’s unusu­al about your earth­quake kit?

Very import­ant. Need to make city more resi­li­ent. My kit has everything required to sur­vive for 3 days.

  1. Why should we vote for you?

I am a fresh face with fresh thoughts and ideas. I work with the com­munity.

  1. Where can we find out more about what you stand for?

www.facebook.com/fresh­thoughts­for­wel­ling­ton

www.vote.co.nz