Interview with George McMenemy, Conservative candidate in North Baddesley, Hampshire (The election took place in March 2022)

 Interview with George McMenemy, Conservative candidate in North Baddesley, Hampshire

• Why a Conservative candidate in North Baddesley?

I think it really boils down to change. North Baddesley had been Liberal Democrat for 27 years and I’ve always lived around the area. I’ve really integrated myself in the community, loved it and also heard a lot about what had gone wrong in terms of local representation. I’m a moderate conservative and I’ve seen the good work the Conservatives have done on Test Valley Borough Council and how there is a big appetite for change and new energy and that’s why I thought it was worth standing in the by-election campaign as a Conservative candidate, to just offer a viable alternative. It’s not even about winning, it’s about offering something different for people.

• What are the main issues you prioritised in the campaign?

The biggest thing in the area I live in and in Test Valley is development of houses (new houses schemes). The Liberal Democrat team came to the decision to develop over 300 new houses in an area called Hoe Lane and the issue I have it’s not a problem with housing, we need housing; but the problem is what it does to the character of the villages we live in where these developments won’t change a single thing to the infrastructure in the village, so for example, the school places won’t change when these houses are built, the local doctor surgery won’t change in terms of the number of doctors and staff it has; so the strain it puts on local services is unbearable and what it would do with the traffic on the roads will just change the whole character of the village that people live in, and their voice wasn’t being heard. That’s what I felt that was the voice of residents and that wasn’t being heard in any election debate or campaign I’ve heard in the area for many years, so talking about that sort of thing that isn’t normally spoken about is probably the most key issue to people in terms of what the borough council can do, and that’s an issue that people really care about to ensure that our green belts and the countryside we live in is protected and that local services are also protected. That’s the main thing we prioritised, and I’m really glad I did it because I realise speaking to people that it is an important issue for residents. 

• Why are the Conservatives the best alternative to the other parties in your area?

The record for the Conservatives in the local area speaks for itself, we come from a very Conservative area, so I think the fact that we can cooperate with other parties is really important, so I would never say that I always have a monopoly on anything that’s better than them but what is important is that on issues that matter to people, the Test Valley Conservative borough council has one of the best records in the country for a “zero tolerance” approach for people that has been prosecuted for dumping illegal substances that are causing harm to people; also in terms of protecting local services, keeping things open… They’re the only party on the local government of Test Valley which makes me feel a connection between myself as a resident and my local government officials. I always say: “What is the point of having local government if you don’t have that connection with people?” and what I’ve realised from standing as a candidate is that they (the Conservatives) gave me so much free range to decide what my priorities were and what I wanted to bring in terms of mental health support for people, highlighting community support and togetherness; the way they gave me the ability to stand up for what I believed in showed that they want individuals of all different types and that they want the council to be more than just approving housing, they want it to be more than that  and that really appealed to me.