BATTLING deep personal loss and fierce political in-fighting, Neil Stock has spent more than a decade at the heart of local government.

Mr Stock, 49, from Little Bromley, was recently honoured with an OBE for "services to local government" in the Queen's New Year's List.

Now the twice leader of Tendring Council reveals what initially ignited his passion for politics - and the experiences which drove him to the edge of quitting for good.

Mr Stock was inspired to join the Conservative Party in reaction to the rise of Tony Blair, who he describes as "insincere and shallow."

"At the time my perception of him was not great - I was not a massive fan and I think it prompted me to become politically active," he said.

"I saw him as terribly insincere and shallow.

"He had a vast majority at the time and it seemed could do no wrong.

"Of course now the perception of him is much more in line with mine.

"I stood in seven different elections before I eventually won in 2003.

"I was living in Colchester initially and stood for election to Colchester Borough Council twice, the county council and a couple of by elections, before standing in the ward I was living at the time - Ardleigh and Little Bromley.

"It is massively humbling to go up on that platform and shake the hand of another winner.

"It makes you value the process even more and it is brutal.

"However it really did make it very sweet when I eventually did win in 2003.

"My first experiences as a councillor were all of getting to know people and the area.

"I hadn't actually ever realised how close Clacton is and suddenly I was going there all the time.

"I got to understand how Tendring is made up and the rich history of the district."

The Tendring Conservative group were formed in 2007, with Mr Stock as chairman.

Mr Stock describes the "surprise" of his first sudden rise to leadership of the council in 2009.

Tendring First and an alliance of five political groups including Labour, Lib Dems and Independents had run the Tendring Council since 2007.

But the Tories seized control at an annual meeting in May 2009.

It was a knife-edge vote, with the coalition administration only enjoying 30 of the 60 seats on the council.

In one dramatic meeting, the 27 Conservatives seized power thanks to the support of three members of the Community Representatives Party and Mr Stock was voted in as leader, replacing Tendring First's David Lines.

"The former administration had basically been a coalition of anyone but the Tories," said Mr Stock.

"I became leader very suddenly, it was a surprise to us.

"Suddenly we had to attempt to run the council and it was hugely challenging.

"The coalition were experienced had known how to run it better than I did, this was a real first for me and I was trying to find my feet.

"I had to become an expert in local government - I now know more about the Local Government Act 1972 than I would ever care to admit."

Mr Stock had to endure several take-over attempts as both the administration and the opposition had 30 seats, leaving the Conservative chairman with the casting vote.

This meant if one Tory was absent, the opposition could seize power.

"It was not a good time for the council," said Mr Stock.

"The politics were not very pleasant, not very constructive and not very productive.

"It was the product of the extremely tight result, we tried to make the best of it."

By this point Mr Stock had spent his entire political career with his wife, Sarah Candy, at his side.

The pair joined the Conservative Party together in 1997 and married in 1998, with Mrs Candy going on to serve on both Tendring Council and Essex County Council.

She joined her husband's cabinet in his first term of leadership.

Together the couple ran Harlequin - which has designed fabrics, belts and bags for the royal family and hit TV shows such as Downton Abbey and The Crown.

Mr Stock said: "The kind of relationship we had worked.

"That's not to say we never argued, but it was never difficult and working together never changed anything.

"She could always robustly challenge anything she didn't think was right and she didn't hold back.

"We went into the election after two years and for the first time in a generation we had an outright majority.

"I felt the job was done - I had delivered a strong administration.

"We needed someone willing to step in as leader, I felt I had done my bit and it was at times pretty unpleasant."

Mr Stock announced his resignation as council leader in October 2012.

Mrs Candy died in April 2014 after a short battle with cancer, leaving behind her husband and three children.

"Her death was massively traumatic and devastating for me," said Mr Stock.

"I had three kids at three different schools, a business to run of which she had been a huge part of.

"Overcoming all of this kept me very busy, which I think is good or I would have gone mad.

"You have to still have a reason to get up every morning and you have to keep going.

"Sarah died on a Saturday, but the kids still went to school as normal on Monday.

"It was horrendous, but life has to keep on going.

"I did not want to give in to my grief."

Mr Stock suggests it may have been this drive to keep busy that led to him to take on the leadership for a second time.

He was made leader of Tendring Council again in 2015 after his predecessor Mick Page lost his seat in the election.

"When Mick Page lost his seat, without a leader we lost our majority on the council and I resolved there and then to go for it," said Mr Stock.

"This time around all councillors have worked together and the council is strong and stable."

Mr Stock adds that he is immensely proud of what he has achieved at the council’s helm in his two terms.

“The appointment of Ian Davidson as chief executive was one of my proudest moments in my first term,” he said.

“He has been an absolute tour de force and really turned things around.

“I was proud of putting money in the budget for sea defences along the Clacton coast.

"We put in around £3 million of the £36 million project and we pulled it off.

“I also feel we are turning a corner with Jaywick, which is the most deprived area in the country .

“Private developers are preparing to do some incredible things there.

“Despite massive cutbacks to funding, we are still delivering and performing.”

Amid mounting criticism of a lack of a Local Plan for housing provision in Tending, Mr Stock says progress is being made.

“If I had a magic wand I would have gone back and written it myself and lots of people wouldn’t be happy," he said.

“But we have to go through this process and consultation.

“I took the formation of a Local Plan as a personal challenge – it was the number one political issue.

“We have to allocate lots more houses, we knew it would be unpopular and I give credit to all councillors.

“Some of the opposition have had to accept decisions that are not ideal, but they have done it for the greater good.

“I think the Plan in its current state has now got planning weight.

“It does get considered when it comes to applications and appeals and it we have gotten it to a certain stage.

“It is difficult because applicants have got the right to appeal our decisions and I understand it can be frustrating and disappointing for people.”