Philip Williams is standing as the Liberal Democrats candidate in the Alsager Town Council by-election this Thursday and it is not his first time seeking election.
The Alsager Town Council east ward election is just days away and Philip Williams is hoping to become a town councillor for a second time. He held the position for eight years before finishing his term two years ago and he spent four years on Cheshire East Council.
Mr Williams has promised to look at the key issues and focus on what the council can do rather than what it cannot. He hopes his past experience as a councillor will encourage local residents to give him their vote.
He said: “I think I’ve got a good track record of working well because as a councillor, sometimes there are tensions, I admit that. But by and large, I think I’m fair minded and balanced. I work with the councilors of all political parties.
“And then I’ve got experience dealing with the departments. Deal with parks, open spaces, all those kind of areas. I’ve also had experience with planning, and when I was on the council, I was often the spokesperson on planning applications, so I’ve got a fair bit of experience.”
Williams has a keen interest in parks and open spaces. He was involved with the Hassall Road play area refurbishment in his previous spell as a councillor and he managed to secure play equipment at Milton Park for children with disabilities.
As well as this, he was on the Cheshire East Highways Committee and the Strategic Planning Board. He said: “I’ve got some insights into how those departments operate, which I think could be useful both for the town council and working alongside the current Cheshire East councillors as well, so it feels if I could have some sort of input on those issues.
“There’s no magic wand, there’s no magic bullet. I can’t pretend I’d be able to sort out all the problems, but I do know how those sort of areas operate within Cheshire East, so I’ve had experience dealing with them, which I feel could be useful at the town council.”
Williams has defended Alsager Town Council from criticism, as he believes not all the slander it faces is fair.
He said: “Having been on the town council, and it’s not perfect, by any means, but I think we’ve got a pretty decent bunch of Councilors at the moment.
“I think they’re all working together well, I think it’s very easy to criticise and to blame the town council for things which are not its fault. I think that’s a hard, hard message to get over to residents, because people, from their point of view, they’re thinking things are declining, the potholes aren’t being filled in, et cetera.
“There are problems, but I think it’s trying to do its best. I think what I’m motivated by is that I feel as if they were getting a bit of a bad rap. Some certain parties are saying everything’s wrong and they’re going to come and sort it all out.
“I just think we need some sort of common sense in there, because there’s a lot of people promising the earth, and I don’t feel that they’re particularly in a position to deliver.”
While Williams hopes to become Alsager Town Council’s newest member, he has sent his best wishes to whichever candidate wins the by-election.
He said: “I wish all the candidates well, whoever they are, whatever party they represent, and whoever wins, I’m sure that they’ll serve the people of Alsager well because all the candidates are very capable people and I wish every success to whoever gets the vote on Thursday the fifth.”
Residents of the east ward have the option to vote for Williams or one of the three other candidates standing, which are Wendy Whittaker-Large (Reform), Margaret Wakelin (Labour) and Charlotte Laura Harding (Green). Votes can be cast between 7am and 10pm on Thursday, June 5 at Alsager Civic.
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