THE Labour party candidate for Skipton & Ripon, Malcolm Birks, is getting on his bike to hit the campaign trail.

Local architect Malcolm has designed a battle-bike with a pop-up trailer full of campaign material to help get his message across.

#His former woodwork teacher from his days at South Craven School, Mike Ashdown, built the campaign box in the shed at the bottom of his garden. Calling the campaign "Ride for Fairness", Malcolm has even won the support of world famous playwright and local hero Alan Bennett.

Malcolm said: “The Labour Party traditionally doesn't get much of a look-in around these parts. I recently received a postcard from Alan Bennett in support of my campaign whilst warning me of a saying in his village, that the Tory Party could field a sheep as their candidate and it would still get elected. But times have changed and the issues in this election are as real in this constituency as they are anywhere else.”

Malcolm is hopeful that his novel campaign will show people that there is a different way to do politics which engages voters across the constituency. “Wouldn’t it be great for this area to confound expectations and elect its first ever Labour MP” he said.