Hill 'humbled' to be chosen by UUP to fight Lagan Valley

ULSTER Unionist Lagan Valley candidate Mark Hill has said he is 'delighted and humbled' to be selected by the Party to fight the 2011 Assembly election in the constituency.

Mr Hill was selected, along with sitting MLA Basil McCrea, as the UUP's two candidates in the constituency.

"At the age of 26 I feel that my profile and background offers the electorate a fresh and modern alternative to the politics currently on offer from our elected representatives and will complement well the groundwork that Basil McCrea has put into the constituency since his election in 2007" Mr Hill said.

"I pledge that if I am elected to the Assembly I will be open and transparent to the local electorate and deliver a highly efficient and accountable service for everyone in Lagan Valley."

Mr Hill went on to say: "I live in the constituency, attended Wallace High School as a student and would perhaps be best known in circles outside of politics given my sporting background. However, I have been running a constituency office for Mid-Ulster MLA Billy Armstrong for the past couple of years and feel well versed in the day-to-day issues that constituents face.

"I now wish to put my knowledge and experience gained to good use for the benefit of all in Lagan Valley. I have a passion for the constituency and have been frustrated from the outside looking in on a number of political decisions taken which have been to the detriment of the people of Lisburn and the surrounding area.

"Over the next six months I will take great care to listen and reach out to the people of Lagan Valley as part of a two-way process of finding out what their concerns are and also to enable them to get to know me better as an individual and to help them understand what it is I wish to achieve by standing for election. I am to give a much wider electorate a voice at Stormont that they don't currently have.

"For me, the Ulster Unionist Party is the only pro-Union Party capable of being truly representative of all the people of Northern Ireland. With a diverse range of candidates from all backgrounds standing on the UUP ticket, the Party continues to show its ambition and drive to deliver accountable and modern politics for the benefit of all, rather than seek power for power's sake.

"I am under no illusions, the next six months offers a massive challenge for me as a new candidate. I believe however that I am up to the challenge and I look forward to engaging with the electorate and delivering an accountable, transparent and capable politician for the people of Lagan Valley come May," he concluded.

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