Skipton and Ripon candidates answer questions from the Craven Herald

The questions were:

1. The house building target for Craven, excluding land in the national park, in the draft Craven Local Plan, is 160 per year for the next 15 years. Is this the correct figure?

2. How important is it to retain a magistrates’ court in Skipton?

3. Should the secondary school selection system in Craven be retained?

The answers from each candidate are set out below in the same numerical order as above.

Jacquie Bell (Liberal Democrat):

1. Initially 160 Craven new homes pa (2,400 over 15 years) seems a lower target than for some other English authorities. However, it's vital to consider the proposed target in relation to consents already approved, greenfield or brownfield site, the capacity for smaller settlements to absorb new build, the relevant infrastructure and the mix of housing type. Affordable and social housing is essential. A robust finalised Local Plan is imperative. Otherwise Craven could fall victim to aggressive applications which are not in the best interest of local communities. Legislation for a community right of appeal is essential for communities to combat inappropriate developments, particularly on greenfield land.

2. Local justice at Skipton Magistrates' Court must continue. Loss of the local police cells has already led to police transporting individuals to Lancashire, Cumbria and Harrogate. Court closure adds to additional costs elsewhere, eg witness expenses, time spent and travel costs for lawyers, probation officers, police, victims and offenders. Poor transport links can increase no-shows by those accused and all involved with a case who depend on public transport. Pressure will be increased on courts like Harrogate - closures elsewhere have evidenced delays for civil as well as criminal cases. There are consequences for the local economy - income for shops, cafes and services on court days.

3. Liberal Democrats believe in an education system that gives opportunities for all with a fair admissions process. Having visited local schools, it is clear the brightest pupils shine in any school and all teachers are committed to excellence. However, there are issues with selection. Some pupils, particularly boys, develop more slowly and could miss out. Grammar schools cream off pupils from other catchment areas. Wealthier parents often pay for extra tuition to gain a grammar school place. Such pupils may subsequently require nurturing to keep up. Ironically, some pupils, deemed a failure at 11, transfer to the sixth form in both our comprehensive and grammar schools and do well.

Malcolm Birks (Labour):

1. I suspect we may need significantly more houses than the figure quoted. However, of much more pressing concern, is the location, type and delivery of new housing. We need to tackle the problems associated with second homeowners pricing out local people. We also require much more brownfield site development, energy upgrades and conversions, as well as more affordable housing and specialist accommodation for the elderly. At the moment there is a planning free-for-all as a result of the Tory-Lib Dem planning reforms and it has provided the private developers with a licence to run roughshod over local communities.

2. I believe it is very important that we retain a magistrates' court in Skipton. Harrogate is too far and too inaccessible by public transport to provide a credible alternative. The regrettable closure of cells in Skipton as a result of spending cuts, has already had knock-on effects on the local criminal justice system. We cannot continue to empty Skipton of its important public services and stop it functioning as a centre for local people.

3. My personal values mean I would prefer to see a comprehensive system and I am proud to have been educated at a local comprehensive – South Craven School. However, I recognise that the selective system in Skipton retains the support of many parents and I would not seek to change it unless there was support to do so. I do want to see more local children, who might benefit from a selective education, being given the opportunity rather than students from outside of the area. This would also have the added benefit of helping to reduce traffic congestion in Skipton.

Andy Brown (Green):

1. The question is not just one of numbers. I would aim for a higher target but of affordable houses on brownfield sites. In my own village of Cononley there is a perfectly good brownfield mill site that could provide upwards of 200 homes. It is not being developed yet, I suspect because it costs more than a greenfield site. There are a welter of small greenfield developments proposed or under way in the village, most of them in inappropriate places. The number of affordable houses on all of these developments is, to the best of my knowledge, zero. We need to repeal the National Policy Planning Framework now and get rid of the bias in favour of developers.

2. Important. More important is to make the entire High Street vibrant. We need a theme to bring people into town like edible Todmorden or Hay on Wye the book town. How about Creative Skipton? And of course the local authority needs some funding if it is going to market our town as effectively as Gary Verity marketed Yorkshire via the Tour.

3. All local children should have access to the best schools. We should stream our children subject by subject not define over 70 per cent as failures at the age of 11.

Alan Henderson (UKIP):

1. The 160 figure may well be flawed, as I have seen many numbers quoted. Perhaps of greater importance are the other related areas of concern? Firstly the Local Plan has been excessively delayed, leading to a 'Developers’ Charter' for Craven, and commented upon by inspectors many times. I also have little confidence in the plan being accepted when it eventually materialises. Secondly the plan is heavily biased towards development in areas such as Sutton-in-Craven, with English Heritage commenting that, little if any, assessment has been made of conservation areas. Craven certainly deserves much better than this haphazard approach.

2. It is vital that a magistrates’ court be retained in Skipton. Some 97 per cent of all crimes are dealt with via magistrates’ courts and local justice should be managed by local people for local people. Successive Governments have centralised the legal system, leading to a breakdown in trust in the criminal justice system locally. Justice has in recent years become ever more remote, with the instigation of fixed penalties and the creation of some 4,000 new penalties since 1997. Let’s keep justice local, swift and be seen to effective, by local people.

3. The system may be biased towards those whose parents who have the time and /or can afford private tuition for their children? Whilst selection should be retained in Craven, the selection process needs careful consideration. Craven residents appreciate the excellent standards of schools such as Ermysted’s and the Girls’ High school which are in the top quartile of the UK. However, we need more grammar school places, provided on a level playing field. Until then, perhaps greater emphasis should be placed on pupils’ capacity and willingness to learn and not just their parents' finances?

Julian Smith (Conservative):

1. It's not for the local MP to determine the correct housing figure for our area or take detailed views on planning. However, I have been very disappointed that the Craven Local Plan has taken so long to be delivered. The local plan gives the council powers against developers, neighbourhood plans give communities power. I want to also represent the hundreds of young people and families who find it impossible to afford a new home in our area - we can't stop building. I believe we can do it in a way that maintains our stunning environment and ensures that the right level of infrastructure and public services.

2. It it very important to maintain it and why I spent so much time during my first year as your MP working to save it. It's also why I was so angry when the cells were closed in Skipton and why I will continue to do everything I can to ensure we keep it. Local justice is an important part of community cohesion and the court serves a large rural area. There will be more challenges to the court over the coming years and I cannot guarantee the outcome of further reviews, but if I am your MP I will do everything I can to defend our magistrates' court.

3. Yes. We have a wide range schools in our area, some selective and some not. The system is not perfect but I believe each of our schools has different attributes and gives a unique opportunity to each pupil and we should celebrate every school. I spent the vast majority of my school career in a comprehensive, my parents were educated at North Yorkshire grammars. There is no 'right way' and our local system works broadly very well. Let's celebrate every school in Craven rather than criticising a unique but diverse system.