Hythe Town Council, North Ward
I am a Green councillor on Hythe Town Council, like my wife Pauline, representing the north ward where we live in Saltwood. We came to Hythe from Belfast because of strong family connections and really appreciate being by the Channel Coast and so close to the beautiful Kentish countryside. We enjoy membership of Hythe tennis club and being part of the Hythe community.
I am a retired newspaper editor who spent my journalist career reporting the divisive and often violent politics of Northern Ireland. I was awarded an OBE in 2005 and an honorary university doctorate in 2012 for services to the media. I am a past president of the UK Society of Editors and was a member of the Press Complaints Commission for several years.
I have joined the Green Party because it best represents my values. It offers a middle way, in place of the divisive party politics of Westminster.
It is a great honour to be elected to Hythe Town Council and I hope in some small way as a councillor to reciprocate the warm welcome I have received in settling in Kent.
I want to play a part in preserving and protecting the great heritage of Hythe but also to promote and progress the town. People everywhere are waking up to the dangers of climate change, water and sewage pollution, and many more issues threatening daily life. That is why more and more voters are turning to the Green Party. I feel the party’s time has come and now we have a real opportunity in Hythe to deliver a better way forward for today’s and tomorrow’s generation.
