First, a bit of background about myself.

Full statement

I moved to Eastleigh in 2016 and have strong roots in the local area. A glutton for punishment, I can regularly be found at the Silverlake or St Mary’s!

A lawyer by trade, in 2021 I founded a consultancy based near Southampton Airport. This seeks to help clients active in the financial services industry meet their legal obligations. I hope that the firm can soon grow to offer interesting employment opportunities to local people. As I see it, as at early April 2024, Eastleigh Central faces three big challenges. I have outlined these below, together with an introduction to what I would do to help tackle them.

(1) The “one party state” in Eastleigh is putting public services, and your finances, at risk!

In December 2023 it was reported in the national press that the UK Government had ordered Eastleigh Borough Council to reduce its debt. This was after a report published by the Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy found that the Borough Council owed £525m in March 2022 (Source: BBC News, 20th December 2023). Admittedly, the report concluded that "Despite the council's apparently high indebtedness… few matters of major concern" were identified. However, with the ratings agency Moody’s [basically an entity which rates the creditworthiness of businesses and other institutions] warning of more council failures in the “near term” and Eastleigh Borough Council being listed as one of the top five most indebted local authorities in England (Source: Local Government Chronicle, 13th September 2023), I struggle to be reassured by this. On 5th March 2024 Birmingham City Council approved £300m in cuts and a 21% rise in council tax over two years after it effectively declared bankruptcy in 2023 (Source: Sky News, 5th March 2024).

Today, Eastleigh Borough Council is made up of 35 Liberal Democrats, three Independents and only one Conservative. Is it any wonder that the Borough Council finds itself in this shocking predicament? There is little chance of effective scrutiny in such an imbalanced Borough Council. If I were to win a seat on the Borough Council, I could put my deep knowledge and experience of financial matters at your service to hold this Liberal Democrat administration to account.

(2) Dog fouling is out of control.

I love dogs and was once the proud owner of a Border Collie. He was a faithful friend through thick and thin. All the same, he did used to leave me the odd “present” in the back garden from time to time. I had to invest in a sturdy trowel to clear them up!

My latest investment is a pocket flashlight. This is because, when returning home from work in the winter evenings, I am never quite sure what delights will await me. Things can get especially hairy as the quality of the street lighting in central Eastleigh is extremely variable. Even during the day I often find myself playing “hopscotch” whilst taking my kids to nursery. They think I’m way too old for this until I explain why dog poo can make people very ill.

On 25th March 2024 the Borough Council published a draft Public Spaces Protection Order which, if enacted, would make the failure to clean up dog mess without a reasonable excuse a criminal offence. This is a welcome development. However, if elected, I would monitor the effectiveness of this measure, making constructive suggestions for improvement where warranted. I’m sick of “running the gauntlet” on the way home from work, and I’m sure many of you are too.

(3) Finding ways to use the empty units in Eastleigh town centre.

Many commercial outlets previously based in Eastleigh town centre closed their doors during the COVID pandemic. A large number of commercial units remain vacant today, with some having been disused for a much longer period of time. Granted, high streets across the UK face huge challenges in today’s economic environment. Nevertheless, if elected, I would seek to use my business knowledge to propose constructive solutions to help rejuvenate our town centre.

Upcoming General Election – Reform UK’s ambitions to reshape politics at the national level

If you are interested in learning about Reform UK’s stance on national issues then please visit the website of my colleague Clare Fawcett who is the party’s Prospective Party Candidate (“PPC”) for Eastleigh. Clare is also standing in the forthcoming Borough Council elections in Eastleigh South. I have included a link to her website below this statement.