‘Politics is in your blood’: Ex-MP Sir Robert Goodwill returns to politics with bid for Scarborough Town Council

Sir Robert Goodwill is returning to active politics less than a year after stepping down from the House of Commons with a bid to become a town councillor in the Weaponness and Ramshill Ward.

The former minister, MEP, and MP is one of 49 candidates standing for election to the 15-seat Scarborough Town Council on polling day on Thursday, May 1.

Speaking to the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS), Sir Robert said: “I’ve never really stopped living and breathing politics, even though I’m not an MP.

“I think it’s important from the very start that the town council hits the ground running and that it takes on powers and responsibilities that currently the county council has,” adding that his experience of working in Government “has given me good experience, which I hope I can bring to bear as a town councillor”.

In addition to Scarborough, town council elections will also be held in Harrogate – the only parts of the county that remained unparished following the abolition of eight borough councils and the creation of North Yorkshire Council in 2023.

Each of the five wards – Castle, Falsgrave and Stepney, Northstead, Weaponness and Ramshill, and Woodlands – will elect three members to represent their respective areas on the new town council.

On the ballot, Sir Robert’s address is listed as his farm in Terrington, near Malton.

Asked what his connection is to the Weaponness and Ramshill Ward, the MP of 19 years said: “We’ve had a flat in that ward since not long after I was elected and we had that as our base when I was in the constituency and we still have it and we stay there when we’re in town, which is quite often.”

Despite his career in national and European politics, the ex-parliamentarian said he was keen to focus on local matters: “I don’t think national issues should be the concern of the town council unless they impinge on people in Scarborough.”

On the ballot, Sir Robert – who was awarded a knighthood in the 2022 New Year Honours list – is listed as ‘Robert Goodwill’.

Asked if he would use his title in the town council chamber if elected, he said: “I’m not precious about being called Sir Robert, most people just call me by my first name.”

The full list of 49 candidates standing across the five wards and their respective polling stations can be found below.

Voting in the election will take place from 7am to 10pm on May 1, and residents will need to bring photo ID. Applications for a Voter Authority Certificate or an Anonymous Elector’s Document valid for this election must reach the Electoral Registration Officer by 5pm on Wednesday 23 April 2025

Castle Ward (11 candidates)

• Stacey Bolton, Reform UK
• William Cooney, Conservative Party
• Paul Davies, Conservative Party
• Nicola Jane Elson, Green Party
• Ros Fox, Conservative Party
• Robert Hall, Independent
• Janet Jefferson, Independent
• Helen Margaret Kindness, Green Party
• Thomas Joseph Murray, Reform UK
• Stuart Noble, Green UK
• Fiona Margaret Stepehnson, Labour Party

The polling station for Castle Ward are located at

• Queen Street Central Hall, Queen Street
• Albemarle Baptist Church, Albemarle Crescent
• Gladstone and Falsgrave Recreation Centre, Wykeham Street

Falsgrave & Stepney Ward (10 candidates)

• Keith Dobbie, Conservative Party
• Peter Hemmingham, Conservative Party
• Gaye Hird, Reform UK
• Yasmin Khan, Green Party
• Jason Frank Mullen, Green Party
• Mark Phillips, Conservative Party
• Denise Ann Sangster, Labour Party
• William Stuart, Reform UK
• Louis Sylvestre, Reform UK
• Kieran Wade, Green Party

The polling stations for Falsgrave & Stepney Ward are located at

• St James Arts Centre, 24 Seamer Road
• Church of Jesus Christ Latter-Day Saints, Stepney Drive
• Falsgrave Resource Centre, Seamer Road
• Emmanuel St. John`s Church Hall, St. John`s Road

Northstead Ward (11 candidates)

• Charlie Allanson, Conservative Party
• Eric Barnes, Social Justice Party
• Charlotte Lucinda Bonner, Green Party
• Simon Nicholas Cox, Green Party
• Matthew Kay, Conservative Party
• David Edward Knowles, Reform UK
• Norman Kenneth Murphy, Reform UK
• Gabrielle Carol Mary Naptali, Green Party
• Dianne Patrick, Reform UK
• Carol Robinson, Conservative Party
• Philip Paul Woods, Labour Party

The polling stations for Northstead Ward are located at

• North Cliff Golf Club, North Cliff Avenue
• Scarborough Cricket Club (The Pavilion), North Marine Road
• Ebenezer Baptist Hall, Columbus Ravine
• St Columba Church, Dean Road

Weaponness & Ramshill Ward (8 candidates)

• Helen Susan Baker, Conservative Party
• Chris Clark, Labour Party
• Robert Everall, Reform UK
• Will Forbes, Green Party
• Robert Goodwill, Conservative Party
• Rich Maw, Independent
• Tim Rowe, Conservative Party
• Vivien Steiner-Bowles, Green Party

The polling stations for Weaponness & Ramshill Ward are located at

• St Andrew`s Church Hall, Albion Crescent
• St Michaels & All Angels Church Hall, Filey Road
• St Edward`s Parish Hall, Avenue Victoria

Woodlands Ward (9 candidates)

• Ian Davies, Green Party
• Pauline Dean, Reform UK
• Christopher William Head, Labour Party
• Sarah Jayne Mason, Reform UK
• Laura Jane Moseley, Green Party
• Christopher John Phillips, Green Party
• Heather Phillips, Conservative Party
• Tashken Turan, Conservative Party
• George Benjamin Wardell, Conservative Party

The polling stations for Woodlands Ward are located at

• Briercliffe Children`s Centre, 76 Briercliffe
• Wreyfield Methodist Church Hall, Wreyfield Drive
• St Lukes Church, Stepney Drive
• Northstead Methodist Church Hall, Givendale Road
• Emmanuel St. John`s Church Hall, St. John`s Road