A COMMUNITY campaigner is preparing her bid to stand for Parliament.

With less than two months until the general election on May 7, Rayleigh Action Group chairman Linda Kendall, 67, has decided to throw her hat in the ring as an independent in an effort to unseat Rayleigh and Wickford’s Tory MP Mark Francois.

Ms Kendall sank £55,000 of her own money in a failed High Court challenge to Rochford District Council’s decision to allow thousands of homes to be built in Rochford.

Despite this, she said she had no regrets over the challenge because she believed herself to be right, and felt she had a duty to represent the views of residents who she believed had been ignored by the council and the courts.

Ms Kendall, of Lubbards Close, Rayleigh, said: “I want to go to Parliament and demand a full inquiry into how this development was allowed, because I don’t think we’ve been well served.

“After London, we are the greatest contributors of tax to the Treasury here in Essex, so I believe we should be listened to more and should have a greater say.”

Ms Kendall, who said she would also be campaigning for a referendum on Britain’s membership of the European Union, said she was brieflyamember of Ukip, but left the party because she was “not happy with the way they behave,” particularly in selecting candidates.

However, she said she was hoping the party would withdraw its candidate in favour of her campaign, as she believed she had strong local support.

This will not be her first foray into the world of politics, having stood as an independent candidate in Castle Point in 1997 and winning 1,301, or 2.7 per cent, of votes cast.