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New candidate in challenge for John Bercow's Buckingham seat
An independent candidate has stepped forward to challenge John Bercow at the general election.
Geoff Howard, a former member of both the Conservative Party and UKIP, has announced that he will fight for the Buckingham seat.
Labour, Lib Dems and Conservatives have all said they will not stand against Mr Bercow after direction from their central offices.
Mr Howard is now the third person to say he is standing against Mr Bercow.
The other two people are Nigel Farage, former UKIP leader, and Patrick Phillips, an independent candidate and former High Sheriff of Buckinghamshire.
Mr Howard said: "I would promise not to employ any members of my family, and would promise to work full-time in the job.
"I strongly disagree with MPs having second jobs, it's just not on. If you're an MP that's a full-time job you've been elected to do."
Mr Howard, a 61-year-old businessman from Eton Wick, Windsor, has said he became disillusioned with UKIP and the Tories over hypocricy and expenses.
He will fight on a platform of honesty and openness and currently sits as a magistrate and was once a Bucks county rugby player.
Mr Howard hopes that his status as an independent would allow him more freedom than being tied to a particularl party's beliefs.
"That's the beauty of being an independent," he said.
"I have been a member of some of the main parties but I became very disillusioned. There's little difference between any of them.
"I'm not under any whip, so I don't have to vote for anything I don't believe in and my constituents don't believe in.
"I can pick and choose, which is a huge asset to have at your fingertips."
As a borough councillor for Slough for 14 years, he has headed a legal action against the Government to recover 1 million in business rates.
Mr Howard added: "I'm a fighter when it comes to wrongdoing. It was important for Slough and it could be important for Buckingham and Winslow."
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Thursday 09 February 2012
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