The Liberal Democrat candidate in the mayoral elections has pledged to keep council tax down if he wins.

Cllr Peter Taylor believes keeping council tax rises below inflation will ensure parks, clean streets and free events will still be available for people in Watford.

He said: “It’s no secret that every council in the country is having their budget slashed by the Conservative government at the moment and Watford is no exception to that.

‘However, thanks to our careful planning over a number of years, I am delighted that I can pledge that any future rises in council tax will be below inflation. That means that we can provide good parks, clean streets and free events across the town and make sure that residents get good value for money.

“We must avoid the painful cuts we are seeing in other parts of the country. A Liberal Democrat run council will prioritise providing excellent services for everyone and keeping council tax under control.'

Current Mayor of Watford Dorothy Thornhill added: “When I was elected mayor sixteen years ago, I inherited a council that was in such a bad financial state that council tax was sky high and the accounts was so poor that they hadn’t been signed off for years.

“I’ve worked my socks off to get to the council to the position where we’re in now where we’ve kept council tax low and delivered great services.”

Cllr Taylor will compete to be the next Watford Mayor alongside Conservative candidate George Jabbour and Labour candidate Jagtar Singh Dhindsa.