Political pets

You might have received a leaflet through your letterbox castigating your local council for wasting money on “pet projects”. We thought that was too good to pass up.

Politicians all have their pet projects, and many of them have four legs. Because, much though social media might tell you otherwise, there are real people behind the leaflets, and the names on the ballot boxes. The Clarion continues in its mission to humanise councillors and the work they do – and we reckon you can tell a lot about a person by the company they keep.

Thank you to all the candidates who submitted entries. We will continue to update this article – so if you're a candidate or a councillor, whether you have a stick insect or a snake, a puppy or a parakeet, we would love to see your pets.

MP pets

Calum has two dogs, Nutmeg and Arnie. Nutmeg is frequently in political photos as he (we presume?) is very good at posing, Arnie seen here getting a cuddle. Calum's launch campaign photo to be an MP back in 2024 starred Oscar the guide dog in a sea of orange diamonds. Please admire the perfect political posing. Mainly from the dog.

Regular readers of the Clarion will recognise the dog in Freddie van Mierlo's photo, as it appears in many of Freddie's appointments in the constituency. However, it never faces the camera. More treats required.

We don't believe Olly Glover has a pet, but we are reliably informed he is easily distracted by Liberal Demo-cats when on the campaign trail.

Charlie Maynard, when we asked, sent this picture of his much missed dog Sisi. Rest in peace, Sisi.

Sean Woodcock has three cats: Midnight, Lunar (Midnight's daughter) and Bella. He supports his local pet shop Crofts; if you are in Banbury, may we also recommend it as the best pet shop we've ever seen?

Anneliese Dodds has no dog, but in this photo Arthur the whippet, pet to Cllr Anna Railton (left), is making a visit to Labour’s Oxford East HQ. We think there must be a biscuit just out of shot. It is a campaign HQ. Of course there are biscuits.

Matthew Barber has this adorable Labrador, who is a regular fixture of his social media feed (we promise we follow him for the politics as well as the puppy). Did you know you could volunteer to be a police dog puppy socialiser for Thames Valley Police? Apply here.

Oxford City

Churchill

Tim Patmore (Conservative) is standing in Churchill. Tim doesn't have a dog currently, as his beloved Odo died in 2019. For much of his life, Odo had to live with Tim's parents as no landlord would allow a dog. After Odo passed away, Tim lobbied the Housing Minister Eddie Hughes and suggested the law was changed to allow dogs in rental properties. Conservatives subsequently changed the law to make blanket 'no pets' bans unlawful.

Ines Wilhelm (Green) is also standing in Churchill. As a Green Party organiser she has been known to allocate delivery rounds to people saying “this one has many cats”. She says meeting pets is the best part of canvassing and leafleting. She met this ginger cat while canvassing in Cowley with candidate Edward Mundy, who commented 'Cats love safer streets'.

Cutteslowe & Sunnymead

David Cunningham (Conservative) is standing in Cutteslowe & Sunnymead. His dogs are Dash and Lulu.

Donnington

This is Azriel, named after the cat in the Smurfs. Azriel spends a lot of time on her allotment, and so is unhappy how Oxford City Council have squeezed allotments and ODFAA to reduce their liabilities, expecting volunteer-based allotment associations to pick up their slack. If elected, Azriel's human, Simon Bazley – Conservative candidate for Donnington and a keen gardener – would push to support allotments and allotment associations.

Hinksey Park

This beautiful grey cat is Dougal. He belongs to Siobhan Lancaster, Labour candidate for Hinksey Park. City council deputy Leader Anna Railton is an existing councillor in Hinksey Park, and not up for re-election this time. She has far too many meetings to have any more pets than the whippet she shares with her husband, Chris, who is standing for re-election in Headington. She does however have a pond she dug in her garden, to encourage biodiversity. When the first iris comes in to flower she gets very excited. The pond is home to approximately 70 million tadpoles, and some friendly frogs.

Headington

Nelson's human is James Jackson (Conservative), who is standing in Headington. Yes, we know the photo on the left is AI generated, but if we must have AI, this is a good use of it.

Also in Headington, Arthur the whippet lives with Chris and his wife Anna. Chris is the LibDem group leader on the city council and is up for re-election in May. Arthur is not a fan of delivering leaflets – too slow for a dog that likes to run. But he does very much like sunbathing and barking at squirrels.

Headington Hill & Northway

James Taylor (Labour) is the elected councillor for Headington Hill & Northway, and is up for re-election. This is his family dog, Pepper, and he’s been talking to cats whilst delivering for Labour in nearby Lye Valley. James, that is. Not Pepper.

Lye Valley

Speaking of Lye Valley, this cat in Lye Valley seems most interested in what James has to say, and would apparently vote Green, if cats could vote. Which they can't. Pantera the black cat belongs to Stephen Harwood, the Labour candidate. He emailed after this article originally went live, saying he couldn't let the Greens get ahead in this contest, even if it did apply to pets. Stephen says he's admittedly more of a dog person, but this is the most dog-like cat you could find. Loyal and needy.

So that's two cats for Labour and one cat for the Greens in Lye Valley. We need a (Kit?) cat bar chart, clearly. (Dogs can't win here, but it would appear in the real world that Reform is fighting this seat too. We wonder what pets they have?)

Marston

Charlotte Vinnicombe is standing in Marston. Her guinea pig is called Popcorn. Popcorn's priority is grass, ensuring availability of fresh vegetables and having a comfortable run. The city council looks after parks, licensing including shops, and housing. Coincidence? We think not. Charlotte has been chatting to the creatures she meets on the doorsteps. She says: “A Labour purr is as good as a Labour promise for me! Lots of support on the doorsteps of Marston today.”

In Marston, you will also find Erik the dog, and Victor the cat. Their human is Mary Clarkson, elected Labour councillor for Marston, and not up for election this time round. Mary says Erik and Victor, despite being traditional adversaries, are generally tolerant of each other- an example she tries to follow in her politics. Apparently Erik is a seasoned political animal & has attended ward surgeries. At 19, Victor takes more of a back seat though, fittingly for the city council, he is an expert at rodent control.

Northfield Brook

Trish Elphinstone (Labour) is standing in Northfield Brook. This is her cat Frank, greeting her back from delivery rounds. She says he keeps her going in all weathers. Everyone should have a Frank.

Quarry & Risinghurst

LibDem candidate Kai has two cats: this is the very beautiful (and apparently incredibly friendly) Iris. Kai's ‘Who can I vote for?’ statement says “He is a passionate advocate for safer streets, green spaces and boosting affordable housing provision.” We think his cat wrote it.

St Mary’s

Emily Kerr does not have a cat, but she did bring world famous cycling influencer cat Sigrid (and her human Travis) to Oxford. This is their trip to Magdalen Road. She's the elected city councillor for St. Mary's, and County Councillor for Bartlemas. As champion for active travel, her advice if you wish to take your pet cycling is to use a cargo bike or trailer; you can use a front basket if you have a smaller pet, but you need to make sure your pet is secured to stop them jumping out. Pet carriers should come with their own clips but you can also use a carabiner. Use a harness, not a collar, as it provides more stability and prevents neck injuries. And get your pet used to it slowly.

Summertown

Lilly the greyhound belongs to Chris Fox (Conservative), who is standing in Summertown.

Temple Cowley

Tony’s cat was once the cat at the Butcher’s Arms in Headington. Now retired, and the grand old age of 18, Geri the pub cat has a home with Tony.

Walton Manor

This is Billy, the Lord Mayor Louise Upton's cat, who is the Labour candidate in Walton Manor, up for re-election this May. Billy sometimes travels in a cat basket in her bike!

Elsewhere

Deddington

James Hartley (LibDem) is standing in Deddington. This is Hedrig the Spanish Water Dog who has been helping do deliveries all over North Oxfordshire. (But mainly Deddington.) He is a regular feature of James’ Bluesky channel, where apparently he likes ponds mid-delivery.

Honourable mentions

We were sent this. We don't think it's a candidate but it gets an honourable mention, for posing and cuteness.

This article should not, of course, be a substitute (no really) for picking your candidate. Parties often don’t publish manifestos for local elections, but here are those that we’ve found so far: we will update the list as the campaign continues. Choose your candidate well!

• Labour Manifesto: Oxford City
• Green Manifesto: Oxford City
• Liberal Democrat Manifesto: Oxford City