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Candidate for Strood South By-Election

By Rochester & Strood Conservatives on

Josie IlesRochester and Strood Conservatives have selected the experienced former Strood South ward councillor and mayor Josie Iles to contest the by-election on Thursday 20 October caused by the resignation of UKIP councillor Catriona Brown-Reckless.
Cllr Trevor Clarke, Chairman of the Rochester and Strood Conservatives, said:

We are very pleased to have Josie as our candidate for this election. Strood South has been let down by the two UKIP councillors elected last year who seem to have been more interested in their own agendas than in representing those who voted for them.
In contrast, our candidate Josie has lived in the ward for many years, knows the area well and will be a strong local voice for the residents. This election is about Strood South, its people and its needs and Josie is well placed to champion them on Medway Council if elected.


Josie Iles said:

I am delighted to have been asked by the local Conservative Party to stand in my home ward of Strood South. I have lived here for 30 years, had the honour and privilege of serving once before on the Council and will ensure that the people of Strood South have someone who is there to work for and represent them.
We have seen Medway’s Conservative-run Council invest millions in the infrastructure of the ward through the Community Hub and Library, our playgrounds and the refurbishment of Strood Sports Centre but there is more to be done. They have now successfully bid for nine million pounds of grant funding for improvements to the highways and traffic flow across the town and I will work to ensure that the voices of local residents are heard as these plans are developed to deliver the best outcomes for Strood.

Josie has lived in the ward with her husband Steve since 1986. She worked for an Investment and Asset Management Company in London until 2009 and is now chairperson of St Francis Pre-School Committee and the treasurer for The Friends of Medway Archives and Rochester and Strood Constituency Conservative Association. She voted to leave the EU in the Referendum and has been impressed with the start Theresa May has made as Prime Minister.