AS the police and crime commissioner elections draw near, the Cambrian News takes a look at the six candidates for Dyfed-Powys who will be hoping to win your vote on 5 May. You will be offered the chance to vote at the same time as votes are cast for the Welsh Assembly Election, and the candidates are as follows:

Richard Church Liberal Democrat

A former member of a police authority from Welshpool, Richard Church has been selected as the Liberal Democrats’ candidate for the role of Dyfed-Powys Police and Crime Commissioner.

Mr Church has vowed to combat the number of people killed and seriously injured on the roads of Dyfed-Powys, which is the worst per 1,000 of the population of any force area in Wales.

Dr William Edmund Davies Independent

Standing as an independent candidate, Dr William Edmund Davies, who goes by his middle name Edmund, is a councillor of 22 years’ experience and has controlled a budget of £350m having served as chair of the finance committee of the old Dyfed County Council.

Dr Davies, who has a PhD in physics and is a five-time town Mayor of St Clears, Carmarthenshire, said he is standing as an independent because he believes the police should be free of any party political influence or bias.

Dafydd Llywelyn Plaid Cymru

The highly-regarded lecturer of criminology and former crime and intelligence analyst for Dyfed-Powys Police, Dafydd Llywelyn has been selected as the Plaid Cymru candidate for the force’s Police and Crime Commissioner.

Dafydd Llywelyn is a teaching fellow at Aberystwyth University and has received two commendations for his critical role in restructuring intelligence resources and his analyst work in Dyfed-Powys Police.

Kevin Madge Labour

Labour’s candidate Kevin Madge is an experienced Carmarthenshire county councillor with 37 years experience of local government, and has held several senior positions including executive board member, deputy leader and leader of the council.

Also a Dyfed-Powys Police Authority member and deputy presiding officer of the Welsh Local Government Association, Mr Madge has vowed to restore town centre CCTV cameras, combat domestic abuse and drugs, and open community police rooms in schools and other local facilities.

Desmond Parkinson UKIP

Desmond Parkinson is a retired superintendent from Shropshire who will stand as UKIP’s candidate.

A former national secretary of the Police Superintendents Association of England and Wales, Mr Parkinson, who helped establish the Sex Offenders Register among his other policing achievements, has previously stood as the Conservative candidate for the role of Police and Crime Commissioner for West Mercia.

Christopher Salmon Conservative

Conservative candidate Christopher Salmon was elected as the first Dyfed Powys-Police and Crime Commissioner in 2012 and will hope to be re-elected next month.

A graduate of Oxford University and the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst, Mr Salmon served for five years as an army officer in the rifles.