County independent councillor Mark Hubbard has launched a new political party with the backing of a 12-strong executive.
Shirehall, Hereford, will be the venue for the first public meeting on Thursday, September 16, at 7.30pm of the It’s Our County Party, with others to follow in the market towns.
People are being invited to go along to hear how the party intends to change things.
It is planned to field candidates in next May’s council elections on the platform of independents fighting for local issues.
He said: “For a long time, the people of Hereford have been fed up with the way Herefordshire, which is a rural county, is run. For example, last year around 10,000 signatures were collected within weeks to fight the Edgar Street proposals in the It’s Our City campaign. We are not a single issue party and are against the growth agenda which is changing Hereford into something it is not. The people who join us will help shape the manifesto for the new party. We also aim to stick to any promises we make.”
It is understood Councillor Hubbard is backed by a number of leading local businessmen.
Among them is Peter Prosser who has pointed to the number of empty shops in the city centre, although there are early signs of some of these being filled.
Herefordshire Council has a total of 58 seats.
It has a Conservative majority, with independents being the next largest group.
Conservatives take all the Cabinet chairs and also hold the leader and deputy leader posts.
At present the council includes 31 Conservatives and nine independents.