Who will be the new Police and Crime Commissioner?

THE full list of candidates standing to replace former South Yorkshire Police and Crime Commissioner Shaun Wright has been revealed ahead of the elections later this month.

Four men are in the running to replace Mr Wright, who stood down in the wake of the Rotherham child sexual exploitation scandal, in a by-election on Thursday October 30.

David Allen from the English Democrats, a sales manager from Doncaster who came second in the inaugral South Yorkshire PCC election in 2012, has put himself forward.

The Labour candidate is the Rev Dr Alan Billings. He is the former deputy leader of Sheffield Council, Sheffield parish priest and of the Youth Justice Board for England and Wales, currently director of the Centre for Ethics and Religion at Lancaster University.

The third candidate is a former police officer and UKIP member – Counsellor Jack Clarkson. He is a member of Sheffield City Council, and also serves as a Stocksbridge town councillor.

The final candidate is Ian Walker, from the Conservative party. He is the managing director of Rotary Electrical UK, was brought up and educated in Sheffield and has returned to live in the city for the past 20 years.

Mr Wright stood down following weeks of pressure following the publication of the Jay report, which revealed that 1,400 girls in the town had been groomed, raped and sexually assaulted over 16 years while authorities turned a blind eye. Steve Pick is currently the acting PCC for South Yorkshire.

The votes in the by-election will be counted in Barnsley on Friday October 31.

For more information on the candidates, as well as their election promises, go to the South Yorkshire Policing and Crime Commissioner website, at: http://www.choosemypcc.org.uk/candidates/area/south-yorkshire.