A UTTOXETER stylist who stepped down from the town council before its first meeting has said he was ‘naive’ in taking the position and was not made aware of how much work was involved.
Chris Withington declined to sign the declaration of acceptance of office which must be done before members sit on Uttoxeter Town Council saying he ‘did not want to be the weak link’ on the authority.
The 24-year-old has told the Advertiser he was led to believe the council would need one night a month for the meeting but it soon became apparent after receiving the vote it would require a lot more of his time when he is already working a six day week at Spires, in Church Street.
Also he was not eligible to stand as he does not own a business in the town, his father is the owner of Spires, and he lives in Denstone, which is outside the three mile radius.
He said he felt pressured into becoming a member after attending one of the Conservatives meetings and being handed the forms, but was not really aware of what he was signing and hoped he would not be elected.
Mr Withington said: “I was confused when I got to the meeting and felt alone as I did not have anyone to talk to.
“I did not have a clue what I was doing. The town deserves someone who knows what they are doing and a representative that has the time to commit to the town council.
“I physically and mentally did not know what I was doing and It would take me a year to get to grips with it which is a long time and the town and council would suffer.” The popular stylist also apologised to the residents who voted for him stating he thinks he is too young and the role would be better served by someone who knew how the council operated and had more life experience.
“I feel sorry for the people who voted for me,” he said. “I know they wasted their vote but on the other side it signifies I was not comfortable with standing.
“I want to let someone else through who knows what they are doing.
“I thought if I sign the declaration and not get out early, I would not be able to get out of it.
“I feel used as I was making up numbers rather than being wanted for my views. I feel bad in one way but in the end I made a bad decision.”
The town council will now need a new member to take his seat and it has been asked if it could be the candidate with the next highest votes, which would be Labour candidate Ian Henderson as Mr Withington declined acceptance not resigned.
If this is not possible the authority will have to hold a by-election.
