Simon Wright Chosen to Contest Norwich South for Liberal Democrats

6.55.23pm BST (GMT +0100) Tue 17th Oct 2006

Liberal Democrats have chosen Simon Wright as their parliamentary candidate to contest Norwich South at the next General Election. The Liberal Democrats finished in strong second place last year in the constituency, just 3,653 votes behind Labour MP Charles Clarke, and the seat is a top target for the party at the next election.

"I am delighted to have been chosen by Liberal Democrat members to contest Norwich South. It would be a great honour to represent the city in which I live in Parliament. After coming close second place last year, I know we have a real opportunity to win here at the next general election."

"One of my biggest concerns in Norwich is the financial position of the Norfolk and Norwich Hospital and our local health services. I will campaign vigorously to protect the quality of patient care. The Government must recognise that locally we are paying over the odds as one of the first areas to have a PFI hospital. Ministers must ensure that the hospital gets sufficient support. I am deeply worried about the financial impact of the PFI contract, and the prospect of healthcare cutbacks across Norfolk as a result of the Norfolk Primary Care Trust's £30 million deficit."

"I will also be speaking up on environmental issues. Here in Norfolk, we are on the frontline of climate change and rising sea-levels, and the Liberal Democrats have the most radical policies of all the main parties to tackle these problems. We would reduce national taxes on income and on those who live in an environmentally friendly way, and instead tax polluting behaviour."

"I will be campaigning against council tax, which is an unfair tax as it takes no account of ability to pay. It hits those on fixed incomes, such as pensioners, the hardest. It must go."

Mr Wright, a former secondary school teacher of mathematics, works as constituency agent for Norman Lamb, Liberal Democrat MP for North Norfolk. He was Mr Lamb's campaign manager at the last election, responsible for the campaign which saw the Liberal Democrats retain the North Norfolk seat on a massively increased majority of 10,606 votes.

Simon Wright is a district councillor in North Norfolk, and has spent most of life in the county. He was brought up on a farm in Norfolk. Simon Wright spent four years in London to study mathematics at Imperial College of Science, Technology and Medicine, and then a Post Graduate Certificate of Education (PGCE) in Secondary Mathematics at Kings College London.

He lives in Eaton with his wife Rosalind, who recently married at Eaton St Andrews parish church.