The former anti-fracking campaigner, Steve Mason, has been selected as the Lib Dem candidate in Thirsk and Malton in North Yorkshire.

The seat has been held since 2015 by the Conservative, Kevin Hollinrake, who supported fracking in the area.

Mr Mason formed the campaign organisation, Frack Free United, which sought to promote renewables and oppose fracking and fossil fuels.

He later spent a year as a director of the former fracking company, Third Energy, after it moved into geothermal power.

He was elected as a Liberal Democrat member of North Yorkshire County Council in 2022 and lives in the constituency.

During the covid pandemic, he created Ryedale Volunteer Network, working with local businesses, community groups, residents and charities.

Mr Mason told the local paper, the Gazette and Herald, he wanted to create communities where people, place and planet can thrive:

“I am not just running for office; I am standing up as a local resident to try and get the best for every single individual in Thirsk and Malton.

“We are so lucky to live in an area that is stunning in so many ways and we should rightly protect it, but not at the cost of our environment, economy, and community. There is a different way we can do things, as I have seen in other parts of the country: we can make Thirsk and Malton a place for our kids to thrive, our families to grow and our parents to retire happily with the right plan and collaboration across the area.”

“As a councillor, I am already committed to creating communities that can thrive and prosper and I am now asking for your support at the ballot box to step up to serve Thirsk and Malton at a national level.”

Mr Hollinrake, appointed a business minister in March 2024, is standing in the election. He had a majority of more than 25,000 in the 2019 election.

Other registered candidates for Thirsk and Malton are Lisa Banes (Labour), Richard McLane (Green), Mark Robinson (Reform UK) and Nicholas Sanders (SDP).

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