General Election: What are the political parties pledging in Yorkshire and Lincolnshire?

With just a week to go until the country goes to the polls, you might still be undecided about which party deserves your vote.

Plenty of people have told me they’re not sure what the politicians stand for - with so much of the campaigns centred around attacking the opposition.

ITV News has trawled through the major parties’ manifestos - or what Reform UK call a ‘contract’ with voters - to help you understand what’s on offer.

Most of the plans they’ve put forward apply to the whole country, and you can read the key takeaways below.

Our region is home to two of the UK’s largest counties: Yorkshire and Lincolnshire.

I’ve been sifting through the parties’ manifestos so you don’t have to.

This is your one-stop shop for understanding what the politicians are offering us - and how they’d grapple with the big questions facing this vast and varied region.

• Levelling up

Levelling up was the 2019 General Election buzzword, helping the Conservatives to poach swathes of the Red Wall from Labour.

You may have noticed that it has not featured as prominently in this election, though.

The Conservatives say they’re still committed to levelling up so that people around the country have the opportunity to “stay local and go far.” They have announced £20m of funding for local regeneration projects in 30 more towns, including Halifax. They have also said they would offer more powers to regional mayors, to empower communities through devolution.

Labour describe levelling up as an “empty promise” by the Tories. They promise to introduce “landmark devolution legislation” to give regional mayors and their combined authorities greater powers. They say local leaders, businesses and colleges would be involved in creating Local Growth Plans for towns and cities, which would "identify growth sectors and put in place the programmes and infrastructure they need to thrive."

The Lib Dems vow to champion investment in the Northern Powerhouse and support regional economic partnerships. They plan to establish a joint council to oversee the UK Shared Prosperity Fund and other levelling up funding, working with combined authorities and councils across the UK.

Reform UK say they would fast-track new housing on brownfield sites and infrastructure projects to support businesses, particularly in the North of England and "coastal regeneration areas."

The Yorkshire Party would establish a Yorkshire regional parliament elected by and representative of its residence. They say this would help the county get a “better, fairer” deal, with more funding from Westminster.

• Transport

You might remember HS2 - the ambitious infrastructure project that we were told would transform train travel in our region, bringing economic benefits with it.

It was scrapped at the Conservative Party Conference last October - so what’s the replacement?

The Conservatives say they would set aside £4.7bn for areas in the North of England and the Midlands to spend on local transport priorities. They say they would deliver on road projects as set out in the 'Network North' plan published by the government last autumn, including setting aside £2.5 billion for a mass transit system in Leeds and West Yorkshire.

Labour are promising to draw up a ten-year infrastructure strategy, with "improving rail connectivity" across the North of England a priority. They say they’ll bring railways into public ownership in a new system called Great British Railways, which focuses on reliable, affordable and efficient services. They also say they would give mayors powers to create "unified" transport systems.

The Liberal Democrats say they would "deliver Northern Powerhouse Rail". Previous proposals for the project could mean high-speed trains from other northern cities to York. they also pledge to review the cancellation of the northern leg of HS2 “to see if it can still be delivered in a way that provides value for money.”

Reform UK pledge to "accelerate transport infrastructure", improving existing rail and road links and making services more integrated. They say they would focus on the North of England, coastal regions, the Midlands and Wales.

The Green Party promises to spend £30 billion on a modern, electrified railway as well as bringing rail back into public ownership. They also plan to subsidise travel by rail and bus, to make it more affordable for passengers.

The Yorkshire Party wants to use Yorkshire’s “fair share" of the money from the cancellation of HS2 to build a West Yorkshire metro system. It has a number of plans to improve roads in Yorkshire, such as constructing a second Pennine dual carriageway crossing, linking Sheffield and Manchester.

• Immigration

Plans to house asylum seekers at RAF Scampton have been divisive and controversial, with many residents opposing the Government’s plans. Immigration has been a major focus of this election - but what does it mean for Scampton, and other mass detention centres like it?

The Conservatives plan to remove asylum seekers by sending them to Rwanda - even if that requires leaving the ECHR. They also pledge to clear the asylum backlog and end the use of hotels to house asylum seekers. Mass asylum centres like RAF Scampton are not mentioned in the Tory manifesto, but Rishi Sunak has defended their use during the election campaign and said it would be temporary.

Labour plans to create a new Border Security Command which they say will “go after the criminal gangs who trade in driving this crisis.” They too pledge to clear the asylum backlog and end hotel use, without mentioning mass asylum centres in their manifesto. The Labour leader has previously backed campaigners who oppose the use of RAF Scampton for asylum seekers. However, when it comes to other mass detention centres like the Bibby Stockholm, he has been unable to confirm his plans.

The Lib Dems pledge to lift the ban on asylum seekers working if they’ve been waiting for a decision for more than three months, allowing them to “integrate” and “contribute to the economy.” They say they’d end the detention of child asylum seekers and reduce detention for adults to “an absolute last resort.”

Reform UK says it’ll process asylum seekers rapidly, “offshore if necessary”, as well as barring any entering from a “safe country” from claiming asylum or citizenship.

The Green Party promises to end the “hostile environment” that they say the Government has created for asylum seekers and immigrants, allowing them to work.

• Healthcare

The Conservatives pledge to recruit 92,000 more nurses and 28,000 more doctors. They say they’ll deliver 40 new hospitals by 2030. This was pledged in the 2019 manifesto so isn’t new, but one of them is set to be part of the Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust.

Labour say part of their “health” mission is to reduce inequalities in health across the country. They pledge to halve the gap in healthy life expectancy between the richest and poorest regions in England.

The Lib Dems want to establish a ‘Health Creation Unit’ in Cabinet to improve the nation’s health and tackle health inequalities.

Have you heard our new podcast Talking Politics? Every week Tom, Robert and Anushka dig into the biggest issues dominating the political agenda…

• The best of the rest

The Conservatives say they would support steelmaking in Scunthorpe "securing the future" of the industry in the UK.

Labour are promising to "end the injustice" of the Mineworkers' Pension Scheme, reviewing the surplus arrangements and transferring the Investment Reserve Fund back to members.

Reform UK say they accept the Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy's recommendations to amend the Mineworkers' Pension Scheme arrangements so that all surpluses accrue to the former miners.

The Lib Dems are pledging to eliminate "unfair regional differences" in domestic energy bills.