The u3a-organised hustings, held in Okehampton on Tuesday (June 25), ignited a lively debate as Central Devon's residents revealed their top concerns for this general election – the environment and the economy.

Five of the constituency's six candidates faced the audience – Conservative candidate Mel Stride, Reform UK candidate Jeffrey Leeks, the Green Party's Gill Westcott, Mark Wooding for the Liberal Democrats, and Labour candidate Ollie Pearson. Independent candidate Arthur Price could not attend in person but did send a recorded opening statement.

Host Eunice Goodwin revealed that climate change was the hottest topic, dominating the submitted questions. The economy followed, but no queries about immigration were submitted, a fact that drew cheers from the crowd.

Climate action was a unanimous call to arms for all candidates. However, it was Gill Westcott who captivated the audience. She explained that the Green Party's priority was "not...about reducing the tax burden [but] making it fair" and described how the party planned to implement a carbon tax on items to fund investment in renewable energy, better public transport and support for better home insulation.

"We can only deal with climate if we do it together. I see if we have to exercise these kinds of freedoms we need to do it collectively," she said.

The economic debate saw sparks fly as Labour's Ollie Pearson and Conservative Mel Stride clashed over tax policies.

Mel Stride vigorously warned voters that a Labour government would increase taxes for working families. "We need to get the [debt-to-GDP] ratio down," he said. "What you don't do to get debt down is what the Labour Party has done, which is put through a whole bunch of spending commitments that are not funded, that will require ultimately more taxation."

Mr Pearson assured voters that Labour's spending plans were "fully costed" and that "what you see in the manifesto is what you're going to get".

Other hot issues included Conservative plans to reform the Personal Independence Payment (PIP), changes to the voting system, Brexit fallout and housing policies.

Mark Wooding earned applause for his compassionate take on PIP, saying: "Most people want to work, want to get out; they are not trying to take advantage of the system. We need a civil service, with an emphasis on civil, and we need to support people, not penalise them."

Brexit remained a contentious topic. One audience member's question on repairing EU economic relations post-Brexit sparked a retort, "Well, we voted for it."

Reform UK's Jeffrey Leeks weighed in with a direct remark: "Doesn't that say enough? The majority voted for it, but it's not being followed through." Mark Wooding, Gill Westcott, and Ollie Pearson also expressed their objections to the current deal, while Mel Stride, though initially a Remainer, championed the advantages of being outside the EU.

The hustings left voters much to ponder, and all eyes will now be on today (July 4) as voters head to the polls to elect their MP for the next five years.