The by-election to determine a replacement councillor for Chaucer ward will take place at the same time as the General Election on May 7.
Five candidates have been put forward for the vacant position, which became available after Labour’s Claire Maugham surprisingly stepped down last month.
The News revealed that Ms Maugham is thought to have resigned following strong criticism from Labour hierarchy, after a letter slamming the council was written by her husband and published in this paper.
Anti-poverty campaigner Helen Dennis will aim to reclaim the position for Labour and has vowed to ‘improve local housing, create more jobs and apprenticeships, and get better transport links.’
William Houngbo, the Liberal Democrat candidate, said he was ‘fighting for new jobs from building the Bakerloo Line extension down the New Kent Road, for affordable homes in every new development and for mental health to be given the same priority as physical health.’
Gareth Rees is the Green Party candidate and has outlined social housing, the London Living wage and green energy as his three priorities.
Former Labour councillor Piers Corbyn will run as an independent, although he is being endorsed by TUSC [Trade Unionist &?Socialist Coalition]. He said he was running on an ‘anti-social cleansing’ platform and claimed ‘major parties offer nothing but lies.’
Security officer Dean Conway is UKIP’s candidate and said he would offer ‘a better, fairer deal from their local council representative than all the tired old political parties can offer after so much of their failure.’
