Could candidate apathy allow in the extremists?

Widespread disinterest in standing for parish council seats could leave the door open for extremists to take them, it was warned this week.

In 43 of the parish wards in East Herts, electors will not get to vote for a local representative on May 3. Too few people have been nominated for a poll in 22 of them and the exact quota has come forward in another 14, which also negates the need for a vote. Only seven wards - Aston, Brickendon Liberty, Cottered, Little Berkhamsted, Walkern, Westmill and Widford - will require an actual vote.

And while town councils generally attract electoral interest, this time there are only five candidates for 12 Sawbridgeworth Town Council seats.

The situation has prompted former Bishop's Stortford mayor Keith Barnes, whose four-seat town Central ward has four British National Party candidates standing among a list of 13, to say: "You could have had an extreme group get in without a vote being cast or someone from the Monster Raving Loony Party."

In Albury, where six seats are up for grabs, only Paul Cole has put his name forward. The situation is similar in Standon, where Henry Davies stands alone for the three spots. In Braughing, the trio of Andrew Peat, David Williamson and Peter Boylan know they already form half of the council.

The new parish councils will have to co-opt new members after May 3 to get up to full strength. If the field of candidates number less than a third of the seats available, a re-election is necessary. If the same happens again, the district council can appoint people.

By comparison, the number of independents standing this year for East Herts Council is on the rise to five - and a former Tory has changed allegiance.

Deborah Clark is a former Conservative who has switched to being an independent in the same Hunsdon, Eastwick and Gilston ward. She said she had tried fighting for change from within but found it difficult to speak out on important matters as a member of a political party, stating: "The resistance to change was frustrating."

Also seeking election in Sawbridgeworth for the district council is her husband Nigel Clark, better known as secretary of Stop Harlow North campaign. He said there was a lot of support to take party politics away from providing basic local services at district level, although at a national level his personal values were Conservative.

Keith Barnes has been an independent in Central for 24 years and former Ratepayers' Association mayor Eric Marshall is back in the fray in Stortford All Saints after more than a decade.

Retired social worker Mary Wilkinson, of Westland Green, is contesting Little Hadham for East Herts as an independent.

Herts and Essex News