Race for Parliamentary Candidacy heats up!

10.29.57pm GMT Wed 7th Mar 2007

Westminster

Three excellent candidates have emerged in the competition to succeed Paul Keetch as the Liberal Democrats' Parliamentary candidate at the next General Election.

Sarah Carr (nee Terry) ran Paul Keetch's campaign in 1997 and gained great experience helping to return a Hereford Lib Dem MP for the first time since World War II. For several years she worked with Liberal Democrat Peers in the House of Lords. She has also been an elected member of a regional council of the Confederation of British Industry. Since 1999 she has worked in the telecoms industry with companies such as AOL Time Warner.

Susan Juned has been a research scientist and was the Leader of Stratford on Avon District Council between 1997 and 2000, working on policies such as promoting recycling and regenerating village communities. Her work has included contributions to Lib Dem Rural Futures policies and helping to draft the last Lib Dem manifesto. In 2001 she contested the safe Tory seat of Stratford on Avon, achieving a 3.5% swing to the Lib Dems from the sitting MP, with another good result when she went on to fight the 2005 General Election.

James Oates is an investment banker specialising in emerging Eastern European economies. He has advised Liberal Democrat MPs and Shadow Cabinet members on business and economic issues. He is also an active campaigner on issues from the Environment to International Affairs. In 2005 James was selected as the Lib Dem candidate for Wycombe, going on to achieve one of the top three most improved results in the South Central region.

Paul Keetch MP says: "I expected some strong candidates to put themselves forward for this seat. But the people the local Party have shortlisted are absolutely excellent. The choice for local Party members is going to be a difficult one. Whoever eventually wins voters can be sure that they will continue to be represented and engaged with in a way that the Tory opposition could never do."

Campaigning by the three candidates has already started and a final decision will be taken at a hustings meeting arranged for Saturday, 31st March at the Shire Hall.