Wednesday 4th June 2008

Last night Henley Constituency Labour Party met to formally adopt Richard McKenzie as their by-election candidate. Richard McKenzie had already been selected to stand for Henley Constituency in a general election.

Richard McKenzie said: "I am proud and delighted to be chosen by local Labour party members to stand for election here in Henley.

I believe that Henley has been sold short for too many years and that the people of Henley deserve a full-time MP to work on their behalf.

The Tories think they can take Henley for granted. They spout empty promises to cover up the glaring holes in their policy. My campaign will expose the Tories' shallow salesmanship for what it really is."

Martin Salter MP for Reading West said "I have known Richard for many years and know what a hard-working local councillor he was and what a valuable contribution he made to the Reading West Labour team. Richard is great at listening to people's concerns and taking them up. He knows how to get things done. He will be an excellent candidate for Labour and would make a fine MP for Henley."

Richard McKenzie, 42, lives with his wife Kathryn and their two children in nearby Reading. A former councillor, he works as a marketing manager for a local fork-lift truck firm and is a keen musician, family man and plays the saxophone in his local church band.

Born in London, Richard grew up in Chertsey, Surrey and studied foreign languages at Reading University. He is a former councillor for Kentwood Ward in Reading, where he worked with residents to cut anti-social behaviour and got more local police for the area. In recent months, Richard has been campaigning on issues raised by local residents such as traffic problems in Henley and environmental worries in Culham. He has also been talking recently to local residents in Berinsfield and Thame about their concerns.