Lincolnshire mayor Andrea Jenkyns in the hot seat

Richard Madden & Sarah Sanderson
BBC News
PA Media Dame Andrea Jenkyns stands at a podium surrounded by four black microphones. She has her arms open and is wearing a sparkly silver dress with a blue and white rosette.PA Media
Dame Andrea Jenkyns became the first elected mayor of Greater Lincolnshire in May

The Greater Lincolnshire mayor Dame Andrea Jenkyns has been in the hot seat on BBC Radio Humberside.

The Reform UK representative was elected last month after recieving 42% of the vote.

Dame Andrea was taking questions from presenter Carla Greene, as well as those from listeners.

Here are the four big takeaways from what she had to say – and you can listen to the full interview on BBC Sounds.

1. Trade college to be built

A man wearing dark sunglasses stares into the camera. He is wearing a t-shirt underneath a purple shirt jacket, which is unbuttoned and open, and has an aqua-blue coloured backpack. He is standing in a street, behind him is an entrance to a shopping centre and other shops in the background, which are all out of focus.
Matthew Burke said places like Grimsby and Cleethorpes needed to have more job opportunities

Matthew Burke from Grimsby wants to see more job opportunities in North East Lincolnshire.

The 33-year-old said: "Look at what other cities are doing and just try and bring that to Grimsby."

Bringing investment to the local area is a key role of the Greater Lincolnshire mayor.

Dame Andrea announced she wanted to build a trade college in the area. She said: "We know right across the country we've got a shortage of plasterers, plumbers, builders.

"Lecturers make more money in the private sector than actually teaching so we need to look at that skills gap."

2. Fair funding across the region

Dame Andrea is wearing a pink suit jacket and is sitting behind a purple and black microphone in a radio studio. A large purple board in the background reads "BBC Radio Humberside".
Dame Andrea was a guest on BBC Radio Humberside taking questions from listeners

Dame Andrea was asked specifically what she would be doing to help people in Northern Lincolnshire.

She responded: "I don't have this silo approach".

The mayor was keen to stress that she would not be favouring one part of the region over another and said her role would help to bring a better balance.

She said: "The good thing about a mayor is that you've got an overview of the whole county so you can ensure fair funding across the area.

"You can't have one part missing out."

3. Improvements to the care sector

A woman with short black hair and glasses smiles into the camera. She has a necklace made of coloured beds and is wearing a black blouse. A tattoo is also visible on her chest.
Corrina Pett asked the mayor what can be done to improve the care industry

Corrina Pett is a mental health support worker in North Lincolnshire. She said she wanted to see more unemployed people trained to help fill the gaps in the care sector.

She said: "There shouldn't be a shortage with the amount of unemployed people here."

Dame Andrea said she wanted to change attitudes towards the sector.

"These are valuable roles and they're not to be looked down on.

"It's about working with the councils, colleges and care providers to ensure school leavers see this career as a viable option."

4. Transport plans

Bill, a BBC Radio Humberside listener, asked why the East Yorkshire and Lincolnshire area missed out on billions of pounds worth of investment for transport projects.

Chancellor Rachel Reeves announced on Wednesday funding for tram, train and bus schemes in mayoral authorities across the Midlands, the North and the West Country.

Dame Andrea Jenkyns said she wanted to come up with a fully costed transport plan for Greater Lincolnshire and promised to fight the business case for more transport investment for the region.

She said: "The Government has given money where they've got Labour mayors and this is why we need to clean up politics."

The mayor made transport one of the key pillars of her election campaign by pledging to create investment in major roads such as the A15, A52 and A17, along with "proper integration between buses, trains and cars".

HM Treasury for a comment.

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