I’m proud to be a part of the local community.

Full statement

My wife and I live near Ilmington and we love living here. It’s a beautiful area and I think it’s important that we do our very best to protect our countryside and villages. I work as a Professor at the University of Warwick specialising in particle physics. I’ve been a school governor and a volunteer on-call first responder for the Warwickshire Ambulance Service. On top of that, I’m a keen musician and run a local band that plays gigs in the area.

That is why I share the concerns of many of you concerning the reorganisation of local government. Reform and the Conservatives have proposed to merge the District and County council into one giant council for all of Warwickshire, which I am worried will mean much of the money that we generate locally will go to the north and not be reinvested here.
The south and north of the county are very different, with different needs and priorities. I’m in favour of two separate Unitary authorities– one for the south and one for the north.

This is also alongside the change in the rules around planning and housing developments. New government rules mean that the target for house building in our district will go up by 50% above the already high levels of development.
We do need more houses but it’s important that they are of the right type and built in the right place and that we get the infrastructure to go with them - schools, doctors’ surgeries and roads. One of my top priorities if I you elect me as your councillor would be to make sure this happens.

The Liberal Democrats have been running the district council since 2023 and are delivering on our promises, directing spending to where it matters for local residents and working closely with our Liberal Democrat MP, Manuela Perteghella.