A councillor is to stand down from Kirklees Council to fight for a Parliamentary seat in York.

Clr James Blanchard will leave his Almondbury seat at the May 2015 council elections after being selected as prospective parliamentary candidate (PPC) for York Outer.

The Lib Dem councillor, who will be moving to York to start a new job, said he was honoured to be selected ahead of next year’s General Election.

Clr Blanchard said: “It is an honour and I am looking forward to working hard for local residents to ensure they get the local services they deserve.

“I will also be campaigning hard alongside our local councillors to ensure that York’s precious Green Belt is protected from reckless housing plans.”

The dad-of-three said it would be unfair to stand for re-election in Kirklees and added he would miss Huddersfield.

Clr Blanchard, who was elected in 2011, said: “I’ll miss Huddersfield. Kirklees is where I met my wife and my children were born here. It’s a really nice place...

“But I’ll be living in York and it wouldn’t be correct to stand in Kirklees.”

Clr Blanchard stood as PPC for Huddersfield in 2010 but finished third in a contest which Labour’s Barry Sheerman has won for decades.

York Outer, however, is hotly contested between the Conservatives and Lib Dems.

The constituency, which comprises the wards surrounding York city centre, is governed by Tory Julian Sturdy who narrowly won the seat over Lib Dem Madeleine Kirk in 2010.

Clr Blanchard said: “I was moving to York anyway, so it just made sense and York is a real prospect for the party.”

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