The background to our 2015 city council election in Queen Edith’s is here. This is the first in a series of introductions to each of the five candidates.
Liberal Democrats
Local guest house owner George Pippas entered politics for the first time only four years ago, when he stood for the position as one of our Queen Edith’s city councillors. He was successfully elected, and now, after his four year term of office, he is standing for re-election.
In council, George has been Deputy Mayor and has a good attendance record. One aspect of the job which he says was unexpected is the length of time required to get things done. It’s for this reason that he’s keen to continue in the role of councillor, as there are many projects which he wants to see through. Examples include getting a pedestrian crossing installed on Fendon Road, and making improvements at Nightingale recreation ground (such as a new pavilion, adding trees and keeping parking restricted to park users). He would also like to work on projects such as getting event space at the former URC church in Cherry Hinton Road made available to the public. He told Queen Edith’s Online: “My own kids had that space available for parties, and I’d like to get it back, but it’ll mean working with councillors from (the adjacent) Coleridge ward.”
George thinks he’s a much better councillor than when he began. He says: “I feel that I’ve learned the ropes and I know which buttons to press. Also, I understand more about the community’s needs. With the experience I have, and the contacts I have made on the council and in the community, I hope to be able to finish some of these jobs and start new ones.”
Although George doesn’t come across as being driven by party politics, he thinks that it’s important to have a single group to fight for Queen Edith’s. He says that other wards, such as Cherry Hinton, speak with a single party voice on council committees, where decisions are made and funds allocated to community projects, and he believes it’s important for Queen Edith’s to do the same. You get the impression that that he considers his role on the South Area Committee, which makes ultra-local decisions, to be as important as his role on the main city council, if not more so.
Full list of candidates and their introductions on this site:
- Matt Worth (Labour)
- Andy Bower (Conservative)
- Joel Chalfen (Green)
- Candido Channell (UKIP)
- George Pippas (Liberal Democrat)
City Council election 2015 in Queen Edith’s – the background