OVER the coming months we will be speaking to the candidates for Warrington's two seats at the General Election - this week, UKIP's Warrington South candidate, Malcolm Lingley.

Up until last March, the man selected as UKIP's candidate to claim the constituency seat had no involvement in politics.

A year on, Mr Lingley is preparing to stun his rivals by winning what is set to be one of the most tightly-contested seats in the country.

Although his experience may see him fall to the back of the pack, the confidence and vision oozing out of the 56-year-old is set to alert fellow candidates.

"I was always one of those people that sat there and complained about politics but did nothing about it but last March I decided to stand up and be counted," he said.

"I believe in UKIP's policy and the common sense of the party - some of the things that we see and read about us is just silly.

"I think we can have two UKIP MPs in the town this time around and in 10-15 years I hope to see a UKIP Government.

"It is all about getting the right people on board, and raising the awareness of UKIP, which is growing very fast."

The battle ahead will be one of the toughest challenges Mr Lingley has faced to date - a challenge he feels will not be helped by the benefits granted to a number of his rivals.

"I want to be there for the people of Warrington but it is an uphill fight as I am not only fighting seasoned politicians, I am also fighting money - that is something UKIP don't have a lot of," added the Orford resident.

"It will be self-financed and I work in traffic management on a zero-hour contract job so I am not guaranteed any hours of work.

"What I have to do is to earn a living so that I can finance this campaign which means my time is limited to a certain degree but if I did not think I could make an impact I would not be doing this."

With May 7 edging ever closer, Malcolm's campaign is set to shift into full throttle to give residents in the constituency a true reflection of what the party stands for.

"People know we are standing to come out of the EU and if that happens everything else will fall in place," he said.

"We can get the control of our borders back and get our sovereignty back to become Great Britain again and not a subsidy of the EU.

"But people have slung all the mud they can at UKIP by calling us everything and some of it will stick but it is not true in muy opinion.

"It is now about meeting the people of Warrington as at the end of the day it is about what they want and hopefully there will be a UKIP candidate."

Despite his lack of experience in politics, Mr Lingley believes his expertise in other areas can ensure he shocks his rivals to go on to claim the seat.

"I am not thick skinned, I am just professional and when I take on a job I try to do it to the best of my ability," he added.

"If I am successful in this campaign I will work to the best of my ability for the constituency."