Two candidates will go head to head for the north ward seat in the first Milford Haven Town Council election in more than eight years.

Colin Sharp and Matthew Norman are standing in the north ward election, which will be held between 7am and 10pm, at the North Road Baptist Church schoolroom, on April 4.

This will be the first town council election since 2004.

Colin, who volunteers at PATCH and the Talking Mercury, said: “Community means a lot to me, it is the one thing that I feel strongly and passionately about. And although I don’t want to get into the political side of things, I am a firm believer in community issues and fighting for people’s rights."

The 47-year-old was born in Kent, and lived in London for 26 years before moving to Milford Haven almost six years ago.

He added: “When I lived in London I didn’t even know my neighbour's name, and it was the community spirit in Milford Haven that made the move from London an easy one.”

Colin, who is also the Milford Haven Business Circle treasurer and a trustee at the Pill Social Centre, said that if elected, he will focus on issues including parking, litter collections, and the regeneration of Milford Haven.

He added: “I want to be a voice for the people more than anything, and push through their issues and be someone that they can come to if they have a problem. I won’t wave a magic wand and solve all the problems, but I will try my very best to help any way I can.”

Matthew Norman, who is a course booking administrator on the energy sector training project at Pembrokeshire College, said that it had always been his ambition to sit on the local council.

The 30-year-old, who was born in Milford Haven, said that after two years in Swansea where he met his wife Susie, he returned to the town three years ago.

The former Mount junior school pupil said: "I always planned that when I reached the age of 30, I would try to become involved in the local council and then this opportunity came up. I've been thinking about it for quite some time and decided that this was the right time."

Matthew said that if elected, he would like to introduce a 30 miles per hour speed limit on the road into Milford Haven, in line with other Pembrokeshire towns, and look into providing street lighting along Thornton Road.

He said: "Pupils from the Westhill housing estate use that route to get into school, and it's also popular with dog walkers and cyclists."

Other key issues for Matthew include more dog waste bins, and the upgrading of local play parks.

He added: "I would also like to work with local businesses and strive to keep the town centre open for business."

Contact Colin on 07960 842196 and Matthew on 01646 456789.