ONE is inclined to assume that the second president of the United States, John Adams, was not being entirely serious when he described the two-party system as “the greatest political evil under our constitution”.

Nevertheless, it would be unwise to think his stark warning about “the division of the republic into two great parties” is a half-forgotten fragment from a world long extinct.

Green Party candidate Rod Hebden would perhaps not go as far as to describe the party system in 21st century Britain as a great evil, but he is in little doubt that something needs to change.

“A lot of the time, people are voting for the least worst option. But I think it’s important for people to have the opportunity to vote for something they actually believe in.”

Rod is the man currently leading the bid for the new museum and art gallery, and during the next two weeks he will be trying to convince the people of Rodbourne Cheney to give him a seat on the council.

He describes himself as a progressive who puts equality and fairness above all.

He admits he would have a much better chance of getting elected if he stood for a different party, but for him that is entirely to miss the point. It is not about getting elected for the sake of getting elected but about standing for the cause in which you believe, standing or falling by those merits alone.

Eschewing the widespread preference for a sometimes cold and callous individualism, he says: “In our society, we have a philosophy which says ‘I am responsible for myself and for my own life’. That’s good in isolation, but the reality is that we are interdependent on each other.”

Indeed, no man is an island.

Speaking about the challenges facing the residents of Rodbourne Cheney, where he has lived for several years, he says: “There are serious issues around traffic, parking and cleanliness. We have a lot of poverty in the area and a lot of kids that need extra support.

“Our schools are feeling the impact of the children’s centres closing and there are a few issues surrounding anti-social behaviour and unemployment.”

Confident about the future prospects for the Green Party, he is keen to remind me that they have 164 councillors across the country and one MP - Caroline Lucas, the member for Brighton Pavilion.

But some of the biggest hurdles the town has to overcome, he says, include its own “negative perception” and the attainment levels of young people.

“If we look at the qualifications of people in Swindon, they are actually quite high. But if we look at the qualifications of people who grew up here, it’s quite low. We are in many ways failing to get our kids up to the education levels of the rest of the country and we are importing others to fill in all those jobs.”

He said this tends to lead people who grow up in Swindon not to see the opportunities presented before them.

It almost goes without saying that he is intensely passionate about the plans for the new museum and art gallery.

“Having something which is iconic and recognisable, which pulls together all the different aspects of Swindon’s story is very exciting indeed.”

He ends poignantly with: “You can’t do everything. But you can do something – and you should.”