The general election clock keeps ticking down - it's almost time for the country to go to the polls and pick who they want to represent them for the next five years.

In that spirit, we've been speaking to all five candidates hoping to be Darlington's next MP.

Standing for the Liberal Democrats is Simon Thorley. We sat down with Simon and asked him what his plans are for the town should he be voted in on July 4.

Simon, tell us a bit about yourself and why you want to be Darlington’s next MP.

He said: “I am from Darlington. I was born here, I grew up here. Darlington is home. I’ve never been someone who would seek to represent somewhere that they don’t live.

“It is about Darlington as much as it is about party politics. I look at Darlington and I can certainly see compared to the towns around it, that some good stuff is happening here.

“We have an investment in the treasury building which is great. The town is growing and investment in the railway station is good as well. Unfortunately, this does not outweigh the issues we are facing.”

“I also look at Darlington town Centre and think that we just lack a vision. I am not a big believer in top-down politics. I am a big believer in the opposite. What we need to have in Darlington is an MP who sees their job is bringing people together to craft and formulate a plan for the long term.

“I think the people of Darlington can come together with a long-term vision to re-energise the town and make it a more pleasant place to live.”

Voters may recognise your name as you were also a candidate earlier this year to become the Tees Valley Mayor. What was that experience like for you and what’s different in this campaign?

Simon said: “There are a lot of similarities, but there are also a lot of differences as well. The Tees Valley campaign covered a much larger area and population.

“You couldn’t get out and speak to as many of the people as you wanted to. Also, with the Tees Valley Mayor, the powers that you get are very narrowly defined in terms of what you can do.

“Whereas, in parliament, you deal with national issues as well as local issues. What we are seeking to do in Darlington is speaking to everybody really, knocking on everyone’s door.

“I also think with the mayor campaign it was great to get some exposure for the Liberal Democrats and our core ideas.”

Tell us about your manifesto and policy points.

Simon first spoke of rolling back the two-child benefit cap – which sees parents only receive child benefits for their first two children.

“It is a very effective investment because down the line you will see it pay itself off multiple times over,” he said.

“It will lift hundreds of thousands of children out of poverty.”

Simon then went on to speak about carers – paying them £2 more than minimum wage, creating a Royal College of Carers; “turning it into something to give it the respect it is due”.

Turning to Darlington, Simon’s priorities are to:

  • End sewage pollution in the Skerne, Cocker Beck and Tees by banning water companies from dumping waste and bringing it into public ownership.
  • Investing in public transport
  • Invest in housing in the right places and “needs to be done properly”.

Simon then mentioned “pushing” the Labour Council should he be elected.

If a Labour MP is elected, would they have the same level of challenge?

Simon said: “Absolutely not. If you look back to when we had a Labour MP and Labour council you certainly didn’t get that.

“What you got was the two of them, the council and the MP working hand in glove.”

One thing we’ve heard a lot from readers is their sadness and anger that the fireworks and free parking have both been lost in recent times. What are your thoughts on this?

Simon said: “Free parking has been lost because funding has been cut from the public authority. Ben Houchen, the Tees Valley Mayor, decided to stop funding that so therefore there is no money for it.

He added that councils “hands are tied” after their budgets have been slashed.

“The fireworks are great, but they cost a fortune. I have been multiple times. But, it is what it is.

“People do not realise that more than 2/3 of the council budget goes on things they have no discretion over such as adult social care.

“You are then talking about a very small chunk of the budget that they have discretion on at all. If there is less money coming in, what can you do?

“This is what happens when you don’t invest in local government for an extended period of time.”

Going back to the mayor just for a moment, you said on social media this week a non-conservative government should properly ‘investigate Lord Houchen’s decisions’ - tell us a bit about what you want to be seen done.

Simon explained: “One of the biggest issues during the mayoral campaign was trying to specifically find out what has happened throughout the seven years of Ben Houchen’s leadership.

“In particular, with the astonishing amounts of money which have gone into the airport and into the South Tees Development Corporation.

“We need the national audit office (NAO), no holds barred, to come in and properly look at every single decision that has been made with these vast amounts of money.”

Now, we’ve seen your leader Ed Davey on a fantastically flamboyant campaign - can we expect the same antics from you?

Simon laughed: “I haven’t got any crazy stunts planned, but now you mention it I could do it for the cause of the party.

“It is all light-hearted, but there is a good reason behind it, it is drawing attention to what we want to say in the message we want to get out as Liberal Democrats.

“We have to think a little bit outside the box.

“I hadn’t thought about doing it, but I actually really like the idea of doing it now you’ve mentioned it so watch this space!”

What would you say to Darlington voters to sway them to vote for you on July 4?

Simon said: “Ultimately, I think that people should vote for what they believe in. You have to vote for the party with the policy and the principles that you want to see in the country.

“It is a sad indictment of our country and our electoral system that people feel that they have to vote tactically, they have to hold their noses and vote for the least bad candidate rather than the candidate they want to vote for.

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“Labour are, unless they do something very silly in the next few weeks, going to form the next government. It is not even going to be close.

“What that means is people have an opportunity, for once, to vote with their heart and not be concerned about, tactical considerations.

“I would simply say to people if you like what I stand for, if you like what the party stands for, then you have to vote for the change you want to see otherwise nothing will ever get better.”