“I wish party politics was just for elections”

Mark Joy has been a parish councillor in Halling, a UKIP councillor, an independent councillor, and a Conservative councillor in Strood and is currently a Conservative councillor in Rainham. Steven met up with him to discuss that political journey, if he still talks to Mark Reckless and his time as a football referee...

Which ward are you the councillor for? 
I'm the councillor for Rainham South West.

Why that ward? 
Well, it wouldn’t originally have been my first choice. But after the issues I had over in Rochester and Strood, and they decided that I wasn't suitable to be one of their candidates, Rainham wanted me. So I came over here, and my ward colleague Barry Kemp also wanted me, because he knew I worked hard. I really respect Barry, somebody I knew I could work with, and with a different perspective on things. 

How much knowledge did you have of the ward before you became the councillor here?
Not a lot, but during the campaign, I actually walked every single road in the ward, and I've never done that before. Even when I had four years as a councillor in what was Strood South, there were certain back roads I still don't know. Having walked every single road, I know every single bit, and when looking for somewhere to meet up, I knew I didn't have many options. We have two secondary schools, we have a primary school, but apart from that, we don't really have a lot because everything seems to be north of the A2. Our southern boundary is Woodside, but I don't actually have Woodside, so I miss out on the Spyglass and Kettle. I do have the Queen's Head that just makes it into my ward. But it's quite unique because, when Edwin Road was built just after the First World War, they released the land to build Edwin and Marshall Roads, and it grew from there. We've got some lovely areas, Platters Park, a little bit of a gem in the middle. We've got the woodlands that goes on to Hoath Way. We've also got quite industrialised retail units. We've got the skate park, the go-karts and the trampolining. All your normal fast foods and one of the biggest businesses. People in this ward seem to do a lot for themselves. I really enjoy the area, and it's quite strange that I can get into this ward a lot of times quicker than I can get into the middle of Strood, just down the road from me.

What is your official occupation? 
I promoted myself to Operations Director. I work for a small pest control company. We cover all of Kent, Surrey, Sussex.

Do you have any other roles, paid or unpaid? 
I work for the FA [Football Association]. I'm an FA football referee observer. I've spent the last 32 years not just getting abused as a politician. I go out to the football pitches and do that. After getting covid, arthritis in my knees seemed to accelerate. I was refereeing at Southern Counties East Football League, the bottom of the non-league pyramid. I didn't want to go backwards, so I get paid to go and watch referees. I go to the East Midland League, the Southern Counties East Football League, and equivalent leagues in Essex and Sussex as well. I spend a lot of my Saturday afternoons at a football ground, being looked after by the club, then watching the referee, giving them some feedback, and writing a report. 
Other volunteer roles, I'm a chair of governors at Parkwood Primary School. For my councillor role, I'm Shadow Cabinet Member for Children's Services and Education. Not surprised that the administration has two portfolio holders covering that area because it is a massive beast. I couldn't actually be happier because in Adam Price, they've got somebody that's, for me, very competent in what he does. He's passionate, and we work well together. It's really nice to be able to work with your counterpart even though we come from opposite sides of the political divide. 

What does a shadow portfolio holder do? 
Part of the role is to just show that if we were to become the administration next time, we're ready to step into that role. It's building relationships. It's holding to account, asking questions and challenging portfolio holders and getting the best outcome for all our children in Medway, something I've always been passionate about. I grew up in a one-parent family, and one of the rocks for us was school. I'm a Catholic by faith due to my nan. She was Belgian, a staunch Catholic. I went to an all-boys Catholic secondary school, being the first child from a one-parent family to ever go to that school, probably wasn't great because middle-class children, they're not nice to anyone that's poorer than them. It gave me my belief. It's the belief of some, but not all. If we get it right with the children, it costs less overall across their lifetime. We seem to, in government, even at local government, we keep throwing money at the other end. When things have gone wrong, instead of trying to put those solid foundations in at the start. The reason politicians do that is that kids don't vote. But they will be voters, or hopefully will be voters.

Where were you born?
I was born in King's Forest Picnic Place in Thetford Forest en route to Mid Suffolk Hospital. I'm actually registered at Bury St Edmunds, but literally, I was supposed to be born at home. The midwife thought there was some complications, called an ambulance and travelling down the road and a cold winter's night in November, it was snowing at the end of November, and I was actually born in the back of the ambulance. 

Did you enjoy school? 
I loved school, but going to an all-boys Catholic school from a one-parent family, the bullying was non-stop.

What age did you leave? 
I stayed into what was lower sixth because I did a BTEC. My mum sacrificed a lot for me to go to that school, she was on her own, she had four kids and she sacrificed for me to go there so I had to get through it. I was doing a BTEC and decided it wasn't for me, so I went to college and did A levels for two years. I studied Maths and Statistics, I studied Business Studies and I studied Law.
I got offered a place at university to study to become a teacher and my mum said to me she would find the money for me to spend another year, and I decided to leave. 

What was your first full-time occupation?
I was an office administrator for a garage door company. I worked there for a number of years, and I really loved it. The only position up for me was the person who ran the unit, and he was the director of the company. There was no real progression. 

Have you ever been arrested?
Once, 17 at the time. Having no money, and everyone telling me how easy it was to go in the shop and steal something. I went in the shop, and I thought I'll give it a go, and I tried, and I was in there for nearly an hour fighting with my conscience, and then I tried, I got caught, and I sat in a police cell. The police officer said to me, “People like you will always get caught, because you know what you're doing is wrong.” I got off with a juvenile caution. I got given a second chance because I went to this all-boys Catholic school. I got given that opportunity where someone else that had gone to a comprehensive probably wouldn't have done it. But I remembered that, and it stuck with me ever since.