A PROSPECTIVE parliamentary candidate for Herefordshire says he is dropping the idea, as juggling campaigning with work commitments “sucks”.

With a General Election now less than 18 months away, Nick Comley, who stood unsuccessfully for the Labour and Co-operative Party in Leominster South ward in May, had been among those hoping to unseat Sir Bill Wiggin in North Herefordshire, where he is Labour’s vice chair.

“Having been made redundant by the charity I worked for after standing in local elections in May, I have reluctantly decided not to pursue nomination as a candidate for @UKLabour in upcoming General Election,” he tweeted.

“Juggling paying the bills or being actively involved in politics sucks.”

He now works as a self-employed consultant in the voluntary sector, “so can’t stand as it could be detrimental to my clients”, he said, adding that he felt his previous employer “didn’t want any high-profile criticism of the government or council”.

But the charity concerned, Malvern-based Community First, said Mr Comley’s redundancy was due to a cut in funding rather than to his campaigning.

“Community First is also going through a very challenging time as are many charities,” interim chief executive Jane Bamber said.

“Nick was not the only member of staff to be made redundant and we have since had to make further redundancies. His standing in local elections had been discussed with the chair and trustees and was not a problem.”

Applications for potential Labour candidates for Herefordshire’s two parliamentary constituencies closes on September 8, after which there will be an internal selection process.

The latest Ipsos poll of voter intentions gives Labour a 17-point lead over the Conservatives nationally. But even a swing of this size would be unlikely to unseat Sir Bill, who gained 63 per cent of the vote in the last General Election.