Liz Hillary
Liz has recently retired from her role as director of a local environmental landscaping company and has a Masters of Business Administration degree.
She believes her business experience and knowledge of environmental management will be very useful as a councillor.
“I understand the pressures that small businesses are facing and I’m used to working with clients, government agencies and staff to get projects completed,” she says.
Now that she is retired, Liz has more spare time and is keen to get involved in the community as a councillor, representing local residents.
Originally from London, Liz has lived in Stroud District since 1994 and in Rodborough for the past six years. She loves the district’s beautiful landscape and the varied local cultural scene.
If elected she will campaign for measures to reduce the traffic congestion on Rodborough roads and – as a keen cyclist – to improve the Wallbridge end of the cycle path. She believes society as a whole needs better public transport, fewer cars on the road and less pollution and she aspires to help the council achieve its goal of carbon neutrality for the district by 2030.
Once a Labour Party member, Liz switched to the Greens after the then Labour government joined the invasion of Afghanistan and Iraq. “That was the beginning of the end of my support and then, when the climate crisis became an issue that I could no longer ignore, I decided to join the Green Party and see what I could do to help,” she says.
Liz is membership secretary for Stroud District Green Party and supports local environmental organisations like Transition Stroud and StroudCo. She is a shareholder in the Folly Wood community woodland near Slad, which is owned by a cooperative and managed for community benefit.
Phil Blomberg
Phil Blomberg has been a councillor on Rodborough Parish Council since 2007. He decided to stand for election to the District Council because of the opportunity to make a difference to the district as a whole.
He would bring to the role of district councillor considerable experience of how local government works.
Phil is a safety consultant with professional qualifications in Sustainability and Environmental Management, which would be useful in working with the council on its various environmental-related projects.
On a local level he would like to see more funding for developing brownfield sites, more work on encouraging active travel and further progress towards carbon neutrality.
On a national and global level Phil wishes for more social justice and sustainable business practices, and the introduction of a fairer proportional representation voting system so that everyone’s votes count.
He would also love to see a Universal Basic Income scheme introduced, to give residents more financial security and simplify the benefits system.
Phil has lived in the Stroud District for 20 years and his favourite things about the area are the countryside and the wide variety of cultural activities.
In his spare time he enjoys mountaineering, cycling and ecology, and playing in a band.