A NEWSOME councillor vowed to protect the town’s character after being named as the Green Party candidate for the next General Election.
Clr Andrew Cooper will fight the Huddersfield seat on behalf of the party at the election – expected to be in May next year.
The councillor, who has represented the Newsome ward for a decade, said he felt our communities had been “weakened” and wanted to restore the pride.
He said: “Huddersfield is the place I have lived and worked for most of my life.
“Like many people I feel passionate about it and want to ensure its character is not lost.
“In recent years the closure of post offices, pubs and local shops has weakened our communities.
“The Greens are the only party on the council to oppose the Kirklees/Tesco deal and Labour’s MP Barry Sheerman is consistently ignored on this issue by Kirklees Council’s Labour leader on this important issue.”
The councillor has been a member of the Green Party since 1988.
He is a politics graduate and manages the Energy Saving Trust Advice Centre for South and West Yorkshire.
Among his recent achievements were proposing the country’s first universally free insulation scheme in 2007 by amending the Kirklees Warm Zone proposal to make cavity wall and loft insulation free for all residents.
Since then more than 100,000 Huddersfield householders have signed up to the scheme which has insulated more than 13,000 cavity walls and 30,000 lofts.
Clr Cooper was recognised for his work on reducing people’s energy bills last year when he was named as one of the country’s Top 100 Environmentalists by a national newspaper.
More recently the councillor successfully campaigned for ‘Welcome to Huddersfield’ signs to be reintroduced and for an end to Council Tax-funded Christmas parties for political parties.
“If we are to leave the old tired parties behind in Huddersfield we need a candidate and a party that people can unite behind,” he added.
“Electing a Green Party MP for Huddersfield could not be ignored and is the most positive use of people’s votes.”
