At a well-attended meeting in St Edyth’s Hall, Sea Mills, Liberal Democrats selected Cllr Clare Campion-Smith to be their prospective parliamentary candidate (PPC) for the Bristol North West parliamentary seat.

Cllr Campion-Smith was first elected to represent the Henleaze ward in May 2006. She was re-elected earlier this year, beating her nearest rival by over 500 votes. From February 2009 to November 2012, Clare was the lead member for Children’s Services and she is now the Vice-Chair of the Business Change & Resources Scrutiny Committee. She has previously worked as a mathematics teacher and currently lives with her husband in Redland. They have two children, one daughter-in-law and one grandson.

The General Election will take place in May 2015. In 2010 the Liberal Democrats came second in the seat, gaining 31.5% of the vote.

Clare had this to say following her selection:

I am proud and excited to have been chosen as the Liberal Democrat candidate for Bristol North West. For the first time in generations, my party will be campaigning on our record in government.

It is a record to be proud of: we are providing opportunity for all. Since 2010, 41,891 local low and middle income workers in the Bristol North West area have benefited from an £800 tax cut. An extra 4,200 jobs have been created and a record number of apprenticeships have been created. We have also delivered nearly £13 million to local schools, as part of our ‘Pupil Premium’ to help disadvantaged children. These are commitments in our manifesto that are now benefiting many thousands of people all across Bristol. It is truly a record to be proud of.

It is a huge honour to be selected, and I can’t wait to meet more people across the area over the coming weeks and months.

Stephen Williams MP, the Liberal Democrat Member of Parliament, added:

Clare is exactly the candidate we need and she will make a fantastic MP for Bristol. She has a lot of experience and cares deeply about the city and its residents. She will be a force to be reckoned with. She is passionate about the fact that constituents need someone who understands them and will act tirelessly on their behalf.”

“I will work with Clare and our Lib Dem councillors across the city to outline to the residents of Bristol how the election of another Liberal Democrat MP will benefit everyone. Not only to help to continue the work of Lib Dems in government and locally on the council, but also to build a stronger economy and a fairer society for all our residents and communities in the city.