THERE is a new face on the reporting team at the Hereford Times.

Carmelo Garcia joined the newsdesk at Holmer Road this week as the paper’s new Local Democracy reporter.

The position has been made available through a BBC-funded scheme to help plug the ‘democratic deficit’ in local journalism.

The BBC has set aside £8m a year to fund 150 local democracy reporters based in newsrooms across the UK.

Carmelo, who is from Ross-on-Wye, will be covering Herefordshire Council’s affairs and other political issues across the county.

“It has become quite a rare thing to see reporters at many council meetings across the county,” he said.

“So many stories go untold simply because there isn’t a reporter there to pick it up.

“Schemes like this are a step in the right direction of plugging the democratic deficit in Herefordshire.

“This local democracy scheme will provide more reports and public scrutiny of what local politicians do in the name of residents.”

The stories reporters like Carmelo write will be available for use by commercial local news organisations that have signed up to the scheme and the BBC.