See also: our candidates in Headington and Quarry & Risinghurst wards

This May 6th Oxford will elect its county and city councillors, as well as the Thames Valley Police & Crime Commissioner.

Roz Smith is an experienced county councillor, who is running again this year in Headington & Quarry county division, which overlaps the Headington Hill & Northway (HHN) ward. Jo Steele and Pippa Hitchcock are our candidates for the city council: after the Lib Dem vote share more than doubled at the last election (2018) taking the party into second place, they are hoping to build on that success and join the Lib Dem team on the City Council.

If elected, we will work to green Headington and Northway, invest in walking, cycling and buses, provide a local voice on planning, closely involve all residents in transport decisions including LTNs (low-traffic neighbourhoods), and tackle Oxford’s spiralling housing costs.

The only other realistic choice here is Labour (the Conservatives don’t have a single Oxford City Councillor, and the Greens only have two, making the Liberal Democrats the principle opposition). We think voting Labour would be a poor choice, because they have failed to carefully listen and consult, particularly on LTNs, they have undermined our Park & Ride sites by permitting the Westgate to provide cheap central parking leading to frequent gridlock, and the Labour leadership catastrophically failed to stand up for our EU citizens amidst the Brexit fiasco.

Brief biographies of our candidates:

Roz Smith (candidate for Headington & Quarry county division) was born in Oxfordshire and has lived here for most of her life. She was first elected as a councillor in 2005. She is active as a trustee for several local charities and as a school governor. She campaigns on local green issues and wants to use her extensive council experience for the benefit of Headington and Northway residents.

Jo Steele (candidate for Headington Hill & Northway city ward) is a local volunteer and campaigner. She is deeply concerned about issues around current road developments, in particular Access to Headington and the impact on Cherwell Drive. She also campaigns to protect the rights of EU27 citizens living and working in Oxford. She is an active member of Oxford for Europe.

Pippa Hitchcock (candidate for Headington Hill & Northway city ward) is a new recruit to our team who worked in university administration for many years, but is now better known in Headington as the landlady of The Butchers Arms. She has lived in Cowley and Headington since arriving in Oxford 20 years ago, and loves being part of the community.