Speen councillor named Liberal Democrat candidate for Newbury Town Council by-election

"Working with and working for members of the Clay Hill community are key to me"

THE Liberal Democrat candidate for the town council by-election wants to put his experience towards “a caring, compassionate and green Newbury”.

The party has named Stuart Gourley as their candidate for the upcoming Clay Hill by-election on May 6.

Mr Gourley, a member of Speen Parish Council, said: “As a Newbury resident myself and current parish councillor, I have enjoyed working hard for residents and helping to solve their issues and I hope to draw upon that experience as a Newbury town councillor should I be elected.

“I want to make the case for a caring, compassionate and green Newbury, joining my Lib Dem colleagues in Clay Hill in making sure that residents’ voices are heard.

“So far in this campaign I have really enjoyed listening to and hearing from local residents of the Clay Hill community and talking with them about the issues that concern them.

“Working with and working for members of the Clay Hill community are key to me, and I encourage anybody who wants to share their thoughts with me to get in touch with me at stuart.gourley@wbld.org.uk”

The Liberal Democrats control 18 of the town council’s 23 seats.

Former Lib Dem deputy leader Olivia Lewis recently switched to an independent, while the Green Party hold two seats and the Conservatives one.

The by-election was triggered after Conservative councillor Jeff Cant was dismissed for not attending meetings for six months.

Mr Cant then tendered his resignation.

Liberal Democrat spokesman for Newbury, Lee Dillon, said: “I’m delighted that Stuart has been selected as the Liberal Democrat candidate for the upcoming by-election in Clay Hill.

“Having known Stuart for a while now, I have no doubt that he is exactly the sort of person who will give all he’s got for the residents of the area.

“The former Conservative councillor who was disqualified for lack of attendance let people down, but I know that Stuart will put others before himself.

“His experience as a parish councillor will mean that if elected he’ll be able to hit the ground running, and he already has a number of notable achievements under his belt on behalf of the residents of Newbury.

“Stuart is passionate about the community and building on the more caring society we have seen grow out of this current pandemic.

“The past year has been a warning to us all that we must take global threats seriously, and I know that helping combat the worsening climate emergency will be at the top of Stuart’s agenda.

“The Lib Dem-run town council has a strong record on these issues and Stuart will make a great addition to that team.

“I look forward to joining Stuart on the campaign trail in Clay Hill just as soon as lockdown rules allow.”

- You can find out more about Mr Gourley and the Lib Dem by-election campaign by visiting www.wbld.org.uk/ClayHillByElection