A former Labour councillor has been unveiled as the Green Party’s candidate for Keighley West in the upcoming Local Elections.
Adrian Farley, who was the councillor for Keighley West from to 2012 to 2021 will be standing as the Green Party candidate for the ward in the local elections due to take place on 2nd May.
On his candidacy, Mr Farley said: “I am delighted to be representing the Green Party in the upcoming elections.
“I love Keighley and I have a track record of working closely with residents and community groups to make things better for the people living in our town.
“I have been a member of the Labour Party for a long time but I have found the party moving further and further away from the party I first joined. Locally, Labour is not delivering for Keighley and nationally all Keir Starmer has to offer is the same disastrous policies of the current Conservative government.
“I have been really impressed with the Green Party in Bradford and how they have offered a genuinely different way of doing politics. It really says a lot that communities across Bradford from Silsden to Bierley are both voting Green in large numbers.”
Councillor Matt Edwards, the Leader of the Green Party group of councillors on Bradford Council has welcomed Adrian as a candidate. He said:
“I am absolutely delighted to welcome Adrian to the Green Party. He brings with him an exceptional amount of experience and a real passion to represent Keighley West, the area he grew up.
“The Green Party has shown that we are a real electoral force in Bradford. Our councillors are hard working and have a track record of standing up for our respective areas on Bradford Council. This sometimes means we disagree but in politics that shouldn’t be a bad thing.
“Our councillors are able to stand up for residents to both this incompetent Labour administration which has dragged our authority into a financial crisis and a Conservative government which is just out of ideas. Our country just isn’t working for too many people and we desperately need something different. And that’s exactly what we offer.”
The Green Party has quadrupled its number of councillors on Bradford Council over the last three years and now has eight councillors in three wards.
In 2021, Councillor Matt Edwards was elected in Tong Ward, a former Labour stronghold and now all three councillors are Green. Similarly, in 2022, Councillor Caroline Whitaker was elected in Craven Ward, a former Conservative stronghold which includes Steeton, Silsden and Addingham. The party also came close to winning both Heaton Ward and Ilkley Ward in the last local elections.