Here the candidates for Chard North's county council seat say why you should vote for them on May 4...

Amanda Broom, Liberal Democrats

AS a current district and town councillor, I am already delivering for residents, both in the town and surrounding area.

Case work is something I am passionate about. In the last two years I have undertaken nearly 400 cases.

I am supporting Chard sports clubs with district council and Sport England workshops, submitted a full council motion supporting WASPI (Women Against State Pension Increase), represent Chard & District Museum, and support the WATCH project (Working All Together in Chard) in awareness of social isolation issues as well as helping with many charity fund raising events.

Most recently I am helping raise awareness of county farm sell offs and the threatened closure of inpatient beds at Chard and District Community Hospital.

I have lived here since the age of 12, attended Holyrood School and Sixth Form, and other than completing a degree in Politics in Staffordshire, I have remained in the town.

I have manufacturing experience as the former operations manager at Oscar Mayer, I am a lead governor at Yeovil College (Equality and Diversity), and a governor at Holyrood Academy.

I am positive and passionate about our community. We have so much to be proud of, so let’s fight for it.

Nigel Pearson, UKIP

NIGEL Pearson will be defending his seat on the Somerset County Council on May 4.

I retired to Somerset age 54 from the construction industry and settled in Purtington just outside Chard.

I was elected as county councillor for Chard North in 2013, a year in which I led UKIP Yeovil to its best ever election results.

I have succeeded in solving a number of the issues that previous councillors had failed to get to grips with, ranging from the installation of additional parking bays on Fore Street to suggesting SCC got a high court injunction to prevent traveller encampments on the Taunton Park and Ride site. This injunction will save Somerset rate payers £50,000 plus a year.

My involvement in arranging funding for local projects has also greatly helped the local community. In addition to this I have been working hard to lay the foundations for more improvements in and around Chard.

Whatever the outcome of the election, representing UKIP and the people of Chard, Combe St Nicholas, Wambrook and Whitestaunton has been a privilege.

John Schofield, Labour

JOHN has lived in a village near Ilminster for 21 years. A retired engineer and manager, he has been interested in politics all his life, and keenly wants to change the way we organise ourselves for the benefit of all the people.

The world we live in in Somerset is arranged by the right-wing parties and their elite paymasters in a way which harms our living standards, environment and quality of life, and it is high time this was changed.

The old, poor and sick should be cared for as if they were family. People in work should be paid a proper rate for the job, with the security of direct employment contracts. They should be allowed to travel to work quickly and cheaply along roads designed for the people, not the landowners.

The environment should be cared for to safeguard children’s health and for future generations, our responsibility as custodians of the earth.
Organic cultivation must be encouraged, with both money and non-money costs taken into account.

We should have a generous and open-hearted policy toward those who flee war and terror and seek refuge here.

Let’s make Somerset and England truly great again.

Martin Wale, Conservative

SINCE retiring for the police and moving to Chard 15 years ago I have undertaken many community roles including town and district councillor and Mayor.

In that time I have tried to represent the Chard district to the best of my ability and in a trustworthy and honest way. These qualities and the experience gained would be to the advantage of all when representing you.

We all know personally that borrowing more and more ends in disaster. The same applies to local government. The repayment of £350 million loans, built up by the Lib Dems, is still costing the tax payer nearly £100,000 a day in repayments.

This money should have been spent on our essential services.
I believe in low council tax, quality services, high investment into Somerset and strong regional and national plans.

If elected I will endeavour to represent all equally. However I will be a Conservative Councillor and believe that to change that role without consulting you is a betrayal of the electorate.

No vague unfulfillable promises from me just an assurance to work hard to achieve the best for Chard North.