Cornish residents divided on timing of festive by-election

Voters are divided on the timing of a by-election being held for Cornwall Council in the run-up to Christmas.

On Thursday, residents will vote to elect a new member to represent the seat of St Columb Minor & Colan, near Newquay.

The by-election was triggered by the resignation of councillor Christine Parsonage, just five months after winning the seat.

The council said it was required to fill the vacancy as soon as possible – and waiting until the New Year would have meant the deadline for registering to vote would have fallen during the week of Christmas.

The seat was one of 28 won by Reform UK at the local elections in May – as the party became the largest on the authority.

However, Parsonage later defected to a new independent group before deciding to stand down as a councillor for medical reasons.

Anna Burfoot, 43, from Mountjoy, said: “It is too near to Christmas. I think a lot of people won’t vote at this time of year.”

She said she believed it was important to vote – but feared others would not feel the same and were “losing faith” in politics.

Roy Leivers, 74, from Quintrell Downs, disagreed and thought people would come out to cast their ballot.

“I think they’re ready for something to happen. I’m going to vote because there’s somebody I want to vote for,” he added.

Another Quintrell Downs resident, 68 year-old Lynn Ashton, said she had received more campaign leaflets than Christmas cards in recent weeks.

She said she hoped whoever was elected would focus on tackling speeding on roads and improving local facilities.

A spokesperson for Cornwall Council said: “When a councillor resigns, we are required to publish a Notice of Vacancy as soon as possible.

“After a Notice of Vacancy is published and electors come forward to request an election for a Unitary Division, the election has to be held within 35 days. The date of election is decided by the Returning Officer.

“When a councillor resigns, we will aim to hold the election as soon as possible, depending on the availability of polling stations.

“We also have to consider the broader timetable. If the St Columb Minor and Colan by-election was held after Christmas, key deadlines, such as registering to vote, would have fallen over the Christmas week.”

The full list of candidates standing in the St Columb Minor & Colan by-election (in order of surname alphabetically):

• Geoff Brown (Liberal Democrat)
• John Fitter (Independent)
• Mark Anthony Formosa (Conservative)
• Heinz Wolfgang Glanville (Reform UK)
• Stuart Charles Hinde (Labour)
• Nigel James May (Independent)
• Frances Mary Williamson (Green)