Paul Kohler's priorities for Wimbledon
These are my priorities as our next MP
I'm running to be our next Liberal Democrat MP to make a difference — to be on your side, fighting every day for a fair deal for Wimbledon, Raynes Park, Motspur Park, Merton Park and New & Old Malden.
Protect our NHS
Our NHS and social care services are on their knees with record high waiting lists and crumbling hospitals.
Paul is fighting to keep local children’s cancer services at St George’s, and for a new primary health-care hub at Manor Drive and a new cancer screening site in Wimbledon.
Liberal Democrats are committed to ensuring everyone gets the care and treatments they need.
Our Fair Deal includes:
✅ Accessible GP Services: Ensuring everyone can see their GP speedily when needed, investing in the training, recruitment, and retention of GPs and freeing up more of their time.
✅ Overhauling NHS Dentistry: Ending the rise in “dental deserts” by improving the availability of NHS appointments and eliminating the burden of private care costs, both of which are leading to people performing DIY dentistry - with devastating outcomes.
✅ Boosting Cancer Survival Rates: Establishing a legal right for cancer patients to start treatment within two months of an urgent referral.
Police in our community
After the police saved his life during a brutal attack in his home, Paul took the Mayor of London to court to stop the closure of Wimbledon police station - and won! Paul is committed to keeping our area safe and is calling for Wimbledon to retain its police station and for more resources to be allocated to community policing.
Our Fair Deal on policing and crime includes:
✅ Enable and encourage local forces to restore proper community policing, where officers have the time and resources they need to focus on preventing and solving crime.
✅ Work with police services to determine what tasks are using disproportionate amounts of police officers' time, and how those processes could be streamlined so that police can spend more time in their communities.
✅ Set up a new national Online Crime Agency, to better protect people from online crime while freeing up local forces' time to tackle local crime.
Rebuilding Our Economy
This Government has trashed our economy, with people struggling to pay their bills and local businesses facing soaring costs.
Paul knows re-engaging with Europe is key to growing our economy. He will fight for greater investment in education and the green technologies of the future, as well as support for those struggling with the Cost of Living crisis including scrapping the two child benefit cap.
Paul and the Lib Dems believe in an inclusive economy, one that offers opportunities for all while ensuring fairness and accountability.
Our Fair Deal will:
✅ Help people with living costs and energy bills by implementing a proper one-off windfall tax on the super-profits of oil and gas companies.
✅ Promote fair taxation by reversing the Conservatives’ unfair tax cuts for big banks
✅ Strengthen tax enforcement, reduce the tax gap, and equip HMRC to combat tax fraud effectively, saving taxpayers billions.
The economy must work for everyone.
Protecting Our Environment
From letting water companies dump sewage in our local rivers to watering-down action on climate change - this Government has trashed our environmental commitments.
Paul will fight to clean up local rivers, such as the Thames and Wandle, protect green spaces including Wimbledon Park and campaign to combat climate change, locally, nationally and internationally.
Paul and the Lib Dems are fighting for a Fair Deal that will deliver protections and end the sewage crisis for good.
Paul and the Lib Dems will:
✅ Set meaningful and binding targets to stop the decline of our natural environment and double nature by 2050: doubling the size of the Protected Area Network, the area of vital wildlife habitats and species abundance.
✅ End sewage discharges by transforming water companies into public benefit companies, ban bonuses for water bosses until discharges and leaks end, and replace Ofwat with a tough new regulator with new powers to prevent sewage dumps.
We must get back on track and address the climate crisis as an urgent priority.
Paul and the Lib Dems will:
✅ Cut greenhouse gas emissions to net zero by 2045.
✅ Invest in renewable power to generate 80% of the UK’s electricity from renewables by 2030.
✅ Provide free retrofits for low-income homes and tax incentives for other households to reduce energy consumption, emissions, fuel bills and reliance on gas.
Fixing Our Broken Politics
Trust in politics is at all time low following Tory sleaze scandals, rule-breaking and cronyism.
Paul will work to restore trust by pushing for electoral reform with the introduction of proportional representation and for more powers to be devolved from Whitehall to local communities.
