The leader of the Liberal Democrats, Ed Davey, is to visit one of the party’s target constituencies — Harrogate and Knaresborough — next week.
Mr Davey will be in Harrogate on Wednesday to meet local members and speak at the Local Government Association conference, which takes place at Harrogate Convention Centre from June 28-30.
The local party is in buoyant mood following last month’s local election results, which saw it become the largest party on North Yorkshire County Council in the constituency area. However, the Conservatives retained overall control of the council.
Nationally, the Lib Dems overturned a 24,000 Tory majority to win yesterday’s Tiverton and Honiton by-election.
David Goode, chair of Harrogate and Knaresborough Liberal Democrats, said:
“He will meet with members and will want to talk about the fantastic Tiverton and Honiton success where we overturned a massive majority.
“It’s also a good opportunity to share our own successes with him and our plans for the general election.”
The Conservative Andrew Jones has been the MP for Harrogate and Knaresborough since 2010 and has won four elections. He succeeded Liberal Democrat Phil Willis.
In the 2019 general election, Mr Jones won 29,962 votes, beating Lib Dem candidate Judith Rogerson by almost 10,000 votes.
The Lib Dems did gain a 12-point swing on 2017, which largely came at the expense of the Labour Party.
Read more:
- Lib Dem leader Ed Davey says Conservatives have ‘taken Harrogate for granted’
- Ex-Lib Dem candidate will not stand in Harrogate and Knaresborough at next election
Mr Goode said the Lib Dem’s prospective parliamentary candidate could be announced as soon as next month, with the selection process currently underway.
Last week, former candidate Ms Rogerson ruled herself out for personal reasons.
Mr Goode added:
“There are rumours of a potential autumn election and we want to be ready.
“Andrew Jones is going to be a worried man. It looks like it’s becoming an unrecoverable position for the Conservative government.”
