Lib Dems selected Aidan Van de Weyer, the deputy leader of South Cambridgeshire District Council, to take on Conservative James Palmer to be the next mayor of Cambridgeshire and Peterborough next May.

“Our area badly needs a different approach from the aggressive behaviour of James Palmer,” said Cllr Van de Weyer.

“He neither listens to people nor achieves anything.” Cllr Van de Weyer grew up in Huntingdonshire and now lives in Barrington, South Cambridgeshire.

He said: “The Covid-19 crisis has shown how we desperately need to reduce inequality across our communities and as we emerge from the lockdown, we will need new plans for better and greener public transport.”

When the mayoralty was contested in 2017, Liberal Democrat Rod Cantrill came second to Conservative James Palmer, with Labour coming in third.

Cllr Van De Weyer added: “Palmer has proved controversial in office, causing public outrage over the number of taxpayer-funded jobs that have been given to his friends and the soaring costs of his office”.