Bedford Elections: 'People before politics' says Conservative councillor seeking re-election

A councillor seeking reelection in May’s local election said councillors should put residents before politics.

Jim Weir, a Conservative, was first elected in 2019 as the ward councillor for Kempston Rural.

”I stood because as a parish councillor I didn’t feel the borough gave this new parish [it was formed in 2007] what it was due, the residents always missed out.

“I thought by being a councillor I would be able to sway things more for my residents, but I then found that it was all about the leadership.

“All councillors owe it to the people that elected them to do the things for them first and foremost, rather than for the party – that’s what we’re here for.

Jim moved to Great Denham in 1998, during its first development phase and when it was still part of Biddenham.

“We moved here and we loved it, we absolutely loved it, and there were only 249 houses and it stayed like that for 15 years before the other 1,700 came along,” he said.

“By then I had become part of the parish council as I wanted to make sure that the development worked for the residents.

“I was the first chair of the school, and I’m still a governor.

“When it was first being built I was on site almost every day to ensure everything was working right, the same when the community hall was built,” he said.

Following changes made by the Boundary Commission for England, Great Denham has left the Kempston Rural Ward to form its own ward.

“If elected my focus will be 100 per cent on this one parish instead of four, which was the case in my old ward,” Jim said.

Jim added that part of that focus will be directed at estate management fees.

“I’ve worked out that the average payment people are charged is just short of £400 a year plus the Open Space Management Charge, which is another £120,” Jim said.

“In Great Denham there’s 13 different estate management companies, so you’ve got 13 sets of accounts to pay for, 13 sets of risk assessments, 13 lots of insurance.

“I’m working with the developers to reduce that to one company and to reduce the bills.

“The Open Space Management Charge is unfair, because Great Denham has a quarter of the total land being maintained, but three quarters of the land is in Kempston, and each household pays the same,” Jim explained.

“If re-elected I will do everything I can to get this removed, or at the very least see that fairness is introduced so it is balanced properly.

“Also, it’s not clever for the borough because we’ve got two sets of workers, two sets of equipment, one doing the old part of Great Denham and one doing the new part and it’s stupid and it’s not efficient,” he said.

Residents can follow Jim’s campaign on Twitter, Facebook or they can call him on 07528 803981.

“I love the community and I always tell those people who say “oh we wish we were still part of Biddenham’, I say no, Great Denham can be an absolutely great place to live.

“My role is to work at making Great Denham a great place to live and improve the quality of life for all residents,” he said.

A list of all the candidates standing in the Great Denham ward can be found here.