A TULLIBODY man has pledged to take politics out of the council, should he be elected next month.

Thomas Harrison, is the only independent candidate standing in the ballot, and hopes to represent his home ward in Clackmannanshire West.

He cites his frustration with party politics and the impact it has had on the day-to-day running of council business.

The father of two, who works as a taxi driver in the county, says he will serve as a councillor for his community – giving residents a chance to influence decisions of the local authority.

Thomas told the Advertiser: "The council should be apolitical, unbiased, and judge everything on its own merit.

"That's not happening – the parties are in-fighting and people are resigning because things aren't getting done.

"Something needs to change and having independent councillors there, with an independent voice, is the only way that's going to happen.

"I'm not someone reading a list of agendas I need to try and follow. There would be no one pulling my strings.

"I want to stand up for the community. And in the end, they need to tell the council what they want, rather than the council telling the communities what they are getting."

Thomas hopes to win voters over with his anti-politics agenda, promising that he would honour the wishes of his constituents, even if there preference went against his own personal opinion.

He said: "My candidacy is about trying to give a voice back to the local people. We've had councillors there for 15 years or possibly longer; but nothing ever changes.

"If the community approached me and told me they wanted something that went against my opinion, I would still go with what the community wanted.

"I would swallow my personal opinion and go with the decision of the people."

He added "We don't need national agendas at street level. If you're an elderly person, you worry about whether your carer is coming at 3pm to give you your dinner.

"Others might be wondering whether their bins are getting emptied, and if you are a council employee you'll be wanting to know if you have a job next month.

"These things have nothing to do with party politics. I'm not a politician; I don't have any policies that I want to take forward. I would want the groups and residents to come to me and tell me what they wanted."

In terms of local issues, Thomas would side with the Tullibody residents calling for the preservation of the leisure facilities at the public park.

He said: "The Civic Centre and the playing fields...they are not used enough and could be used more, but they're important to the community.

"You can't just build on everything. We should keep the site and not move it in with the school.

"Efforts should be made to get more groups into the Civic Centre and use the facilities. It should be a lot easier to book it.

"Budgets are limited, so there is pressure to find the smartest way to spend."