Voters will go to the polls in a by-election following a councillor's resignation over the proposed Wisley Airfield development. Polling day on Thursday (October 19) will see a new member elected to the county council to represent The Horsleys.
Residents can cast their ballot between 7am and 10pm and will need photo ID to vote. The outgoing councillor, Residents for Guildford and Villages' Colin Cross, described the county council's response to an appeal on the plans as a “travesty of the highest order” in announcing his resignation.
Plans for 1,700 homes on the former airfield, near junction 10 of the M25 and A3, were debated by Guildford Borough Council in July, but are also the subject of an appeal to government inspectors. The appeal, still ongoing, was submitted by Taylor Wimpey because the borough council had not made a decision on the application for the former green belt site.
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The borough council's planning committee said it would have rejected the application, had it not been the subject of an appeal, which took the decision out of Guildford's hands. Mr Cross said a document regarding the highways implications of the development that was drawn up by the county council as part of the appeals process was “the final straw” in handing in his resignation.
Four candidates will stand in Thursday's by-election, representing Labour, Residents for Guildford and Villages (R4GV), the Liberal Democrats and the Conservatives. While the Labour candidate, John Barnes, said the other large parties had failed to end "piecemeal development" and there had been "poor protection for villages and worsening public transport", the Conservative candidate said he was "firmly against" the Wisley Airfield development.
Dennis Booth, a former Guildford Borough councillor, is standing for R4GV, and Mole Valley councillor Paul Kennedy is standing for the Lib Dems. There are 81 county councillors at Surrey and the Conservatives currently have a majority with 44 councillors.
There is currently one R4GV councillor, for Guildford South-East, two Labour councillors and 16 Liberal Democrats. We round up below, in alphabetical order, why the candidates for the seat say voters should put a cross next to their name.
John Barnes, Labour
"These are critical times for residents in our part of Surrey. We have national challenges playing out on our own doorstep: the energy crisis, cost of living challenges and loss of confidence in politicians. Neither Conservative nor Lib Dems nor R4GV nor even ‘greens’ have ended piecemeal development. Instead, we’ve had poor protection for villages and worsening public transport.
"More recently, a welcome urge to create more homes has been thoughtlessly developed to overwhelm existing communities and has not put in place the infrastructure to support it, such as links to public transport. We can’t leave this to other people to sort out. I’m standing because I live here in the Horsley division along with you. I have lived here with my wife for 36 years, and my sons grew up and went to school here.
"I know what it means to depend on local shops, schools and services, and I am committed to the preservation of village life. I can be a voice for us, and a link to a fresh Labour government which will be much more committed to local government and will place a higher value on public services."
Dennis Booth, Residents for Guildford and Villages
"Please use your vital by-election vote to elect me, Dennis Booth - your true residents’ representative for our villages. I will follow our current R4GV county councillor as a residents-focused voice, fighting the unsustainable Wisley New Town proposals and working with all parties – parish councils, independents and residents’ groups - to challenge SCC’s total lack of infrastructure planning for our local roads, medical facilities and education required by our growing population.
"Residents need residents fighting for them on SCC, not the national political parties responsible for the mess our villages are now in as a direct result of the dreadful Local Plan created by Conservatives and fully supported by the Liberal Democrats’ leadership. R4GV’s retiring councillor has achieved substantial funding for local road and pavement improvements and new facilities, and I am committed to extending this good work for you, together with our excellent R4GV Borough councillors.
"My experience as a borough councillor and as Mayor of Guildford enables me to deliver for you, navigating local councils and their committees. I care passionately about our countryside and will hold SCC accountable for spending the £millions of Section 106 money owed to our communities that the Conservative administration is currently sitting on."
Paul Kennedy, Liberal Democrats
"I've been campaigning in the Horsleys for nine years now - 38% of you voted for me to be your county councillor in 2017, so many of you know me already. And as I’ve been speaking to you during this by-election you've made it clear you're more fed up than ever with being let down and taken for granted by the Conservatives who run Surrey County Council and in Parliament.
"You want action on roads, schools and community infrastructure; and a fully committed county councillor with energy, professional experience (I’m a former barrister, accountant and actuary) and local knowledge who can work with our villages and community leaders to get a better deal for residents.
"You want me to keep fighting against the Wisley development (I'm a witness for VAWNT at the inquiry this week) and demand the infrastructure that the developers and Surrey County Council are failing to provide, to get Ripley's primary school reopened and the Raleigh properly funded, and the Howard finally sorted without destroying more precious greenbelt. I understand and if elected will be the community champion local people want and deserve."
Alexander Stewart-Clark, Conservatives
The Guildford Conservatives said Mr Stewart-Clark had been listening to residents and was already working with Angela Richardson MP and colleagues at Surrey County Council on the issues residents care about, and that he was "firmly against" the Wisley development. Mr Stewart-Clark said: “It is tragic that the decision on Wisley planning is out of local hands, which is purely down to the Lib Dem leadership’s incompetence at Guildford Borough Council.
"I will work to ensure that if approved, our villages get the infrastructure improvements residents want to see. If elected, I will stand up for local residents and champion local opinion in the chambers of Surrey County Council. I’ve eaten, breathed and slept in this precious part of Surrey over the last 37 years. I now want to serve our community, and I hope I can have your vote on the 19th October.”
Regarding the planning meeting about the Wisley Airfield site, the Guildford Lib Dems said: "The decision was unanimous, with councillors from all parties highlighting planning concerns relating to local road capacity, its lack of environmental sustainability, and unsuitable housing density. The same meeting also heard representations from local residents concerned about similar issues."
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