Letter: I Will Be Stepping Down As A County Councillor

Published on: 26 Sep, 2020
Updated on: 26 Sep, 2020

Cllr Keith Taylor

From Keith Taylor

Conservative county councillor for Shere

In response to: Comment: Surrey County Elections to Go Ahead As Reorganisation Doubts Remain – in the article, it was said that it was yet to be seen if Keith Taylor would be standing as a candidate again in May next year.

Most of my county council division is in the Mole Valley Parliamentary Constituency so it was the MV Conservative Association which contacted me, more than a year ago, to ask whether I wished to stand as a candidate for Surrey County Council again.

I replied saying that I did not. I also made it clear that the reason for my decision was that, after very many years of public service, I really felt that I owed it to my family and myself to take things easier from 2021 onwards.

In parallel with a demanding business career, I previously served for 32 years as one of the two Guildford Borough Councilors for the Send ward.

I will, by next May, have served for 12 years as the Surrey County Councilor for the Shere Division. Over those years, I have held a wide range of senior positions on both the borough and county councils and I am proud of my many achievements. However, I still believe that this is the appropriate time for me to “pass the baton” to other, hopefully younger, councillors.