LABOUR’S David Simcock has won the by-election caused by the resignation of Abergavenny town councillor Paul Wadsworth and will now represent the Cantref ward on the town council.

He claimed the seat with 198 votes with Conservative Roger Fury winning 170 and independent candidate Christopher Copner winning 69. The turn out for the election was just 26 per cent.

Mr Simcock and his wife Penny have lived in Abergavenny for 17 years and currently reside in the Cantref Ward. Until his recent retirement, David was a Fostering Officer with Monmouthshire County Council, and still works in this role on a part-time basis.

He is an active member and former Chair of the Gwent Mountaineering Club. He has been a member of Crickhowell Choral Society for 12 years and is the bass representative on the choir’s committee.

He says he is keen to build on Abergavenny’s reputation as a venue for major tourist events and wants to ensure the town gets real benefits from the Eisteddfod in 2016.

“Abergavenny is a great place to live in and to visit but it can be so much better. I wanted to stand for the town council because I feel strongly about Abergaveny’s many unresolved issues including the long-running saga of the cattle market, overdue decisions about the relocation of the library, the upgrading of the Market Hall and the future of our much-loved Melville Theatre. We must also work to establish better bus to train links, particularly for commuters,” said Mr Simcock