I have lived and worked in Cambridgeshire for many years and I’m standing in the by-election to give you the chance to elect a councillor working for you.

Full statement

I firmly believe that to represent people you must take the time to knock on doors and listen. I have been out speaking to residents every day and will continue to meet as many residents as possible.

Local people say that Ramsey and Bury has been ignored by the County Council for far too long. The Council has been led by Conservatives or Lib Dems since it was established more than 50 years ago. Locally we’ve had Reform, Conservative and UKIP county councillors.

Now it’s your chance to change that. I will be an active and visible councillor, knocking on doors all year round and holding regular surgeries. I will work closely with our Labour MP, Sam Carling.

As a councillor, I will represent the whole community and my focus will be on fixing problems and delivering for Ramsey and Bury:

Sort out our roads: The Labour Government has doubled road repair funding. I will fight to ensure Ramsey gets its share and that fen roads get the special attention they need. I’ve been a county councillor before, I know how much should be spent here in Ramsey & Bury.

The right infrastructure: the Conservative mayor is threatening to cut over a third of our county’s bus network. The County Council has a direct role in being able to stop those plans.I will also campaign for better phone and WiFi connectivity here. With new housing being built locally, I’ll press for infrastructure first. It’s not fair on existing and new residents otherwise.

Combat crime: Clamp down on speeding and antisocial driving. More visible local police. More CCTV and better street lighting. Boost youth services so that young people have constructive things to do. I’ll organise public meetings for you to share your priorities with the police.

Back our armed forces: Labour is investing £1.5billion to improve housing for our armed forces. I will work with our MP to press for Ramsey service men and women to benefit.

Tackle inequality: I will campaign for more free breakfast clubs in our primary schools and stand against the Lib Dem council’s cuts to school holiday meals for the most vulnerable families. We need more places for children with special educational needs.

Time for a fresh start here in Ramsey and Bury. I believe in problem solving, not finger pointing. I am a hard-working and experienced councillor who is ready to fight for you from day one.

Special message for ‘progressive voters’

If you are a ‘tactical voter’ looking for the progressive option then it’s clear that Labour is your choice: Just over a year ago here in Ramsey and Bury, almost twice as many people voted Labour as backed either Lib Dem or Green.

Now a revitalised local party is mounting a strong campaign buoyed by recent opinion polls showing Labour nipping at the heels of Reform. It’s Reform we need to beat, they won the seat a year ago but already their councillor has resigned.

Let’s turn the page on past failures by electing me as your County Councillor.