Following the sad passing of Cllr Shanika Mahendran, I have been selected as the Labour Party candidate for the New Bradwell Ward in the by election which will take place on Thursday 24th September.

Full statement

As an introduction, I have spent most of my life in Milton Keynes, growing up nearby in Great Linford. I’ve recently taken early retirement but spent most of my working life at Cranfield University. I’ve been a governor at two primary schools, and I have previously served as a City Councillor, working with Shanika and Stephen Brown, who holds the other seat in the ward.

I’m currently getting to know the area better. I’ve already been out delivering leaflets which you may have seen, and I will be starting to knock on doors and introduce myself in person in the next few days.

I’ve already got experience of helping people with issues such as road safety, fly tipping, and surface water flooding, and will be keen to find out what matters to people in this area.

I’ve heard that anti-social behaviour and theft from cars is an issue in some places, so I’ve spoken to Chris Curtis MP to see if we can arrange a meeting with Thames Valley Police to see how councillors can assist neighbourhood officers in investigating and addressing these problems.