FOUR candidates from two parties will square off in a town council by-election next week with two seats on the authority up for grabs.

An election for the Harroway Ward of Andover town council will take place on Thursday, February 6. The vote is being held after two of the ward’s previous councillors – Peter Scott and Dorothy Day – left the authority in November having failed to attend a single meeting in the six months since the election.

Since then the ward has been represented by just one town councillor, deputy mayor Cllr Lauren Banville, but she will soon be joined by two of four candidates standing in next week’s by-election.

The Liberal Democrats have put forward two candidates in former British Army officer Luigi Gregori, who stood in the 2019 general election, and ex-town councillor Robin Hughes.

A statement from the Liberal Democrats read: “We need a town council which keeps taxes low, delivers on its duties and looks after the interests of its local residents.

“What we need are local volunteers who listen to our residents, working together all year round competently. We need local councillors who stand up for Andover and hold to account our councils and MP.

“That is not what we have now. What we need are Liberal Democrat councillors.”

“Too much time is spent on faction infighting rather than working for Andover. We do not promise what we cannot deliver, we do not claim credit for what we have not done. Lend us your vote. Demand Better for Andover. We have a track record of getting the right things done, and not wasting taxpayers’ money. Vote Liberal Democrat.”

The election also marks the first time that the Andover Independents Party, registered in September 2019 and led by town and borough councillor Rebecca Meyer, will be putting candidates forward.

Madeleine Fairweather is a pharmaceutical consultant and has lived in Andover for over 20 years. She is a carer for Parkinson’s UK and a volunteer for Help for Heroes and describes the town as a “lovely and very friendly” place to live and work.

She added: “I’m proud to call Andover my home and I want to help it become even better so that future generations can enjoy it as much as I do.”

Fellow candidate Nicholas Asamoah, who moved to the town at a young age, is director of local company Eco Steam Valet and a youth football coach at Andover Town FC.

He says one of his goals as a councillor would be to create a better future for young people and encourage them to do their part in the community, adding: “Andover is a beautiful place to live and raise a family. Residents are polite and have an incredibly willingness to help those in need.”

Polling stations in the ward, of which there are six, will open at 7am and close at 10pm.

For more information go to testvalley.gov.uk/aboutyourcouncil/localdemocracy/elections