A former Selby District Councillor hopes to win back the constituency of Selby for the Conservative Party at this year’s General Election.

Charles Richardson, 37, will be fighting against Labour’s Keir Mather MP, the 25-year-old who sensationally won the Selby & Ainsty by-election last July.

Keir, now the youngest MP in the Commons, took the former ‘safe’ Conservative seat from the Tories with a 4,161 majority and 46 per cent of the vote.

The by-election followed the resignation of former government minister Nigel Adams, who in 2019 had a majority of 20,137, gaining 60 per cent of the vote.

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Charles, who is single, is a life-long Selby resident, and attended Selby High School.

Described by local Tories as a ‘dedicated local campaigner,’ the surveyor by trade has held positions within the local Conservative Party.

He represented Carlton and Camblesforth on Selby District Council until it was abolished last May and was a deputy chairman of its planning committee.

He previously worked for HS2, until the northern leg was axed last year, and is about to start a new role with the National Grid. He also serves as a governor of Cawood CE Primary School.

Charles says he knows the ‘new’ Selby constituency ‘very well.’

“I can tap into a lot of local issues but it (winning) won’t be easy,” he told the Press.

Based on current polling, the Electoral Calculus predicts Keir Mather MP returning to parliament with a 14 per cent majority.

The ‘new’ constituency of Selby is more akin to the former Selby constituency, which from 1997 to 2010 was represented by Labour’s John Grogan until Selby & Ainsty was created with more Tory-leaning areas west of York. They have now joined the new Wetherby and Easingwold constituency, replaced by more Labour-leaning areas around Kippax to the west.

Former Selby District Council leader Mark Crane said: “Charles is well suited to represent the residents of Selby in Westminster. He grew up in Selby and has been involved in number of local causes, including the Friends of Selby War Memorial Hospital and the Selby Young Farmers Association. Being from Selby, he’ll be a strong voice for Selby in Parliament.”

Charles says he is thrilled to have been selected and is already out campaigning, saying the town needs to be represented by someone ‘rooted’ in the town.

Selby’s new MP Keir Mather spent his childhood in Brough, East Yorkshire.

Charles continued: “If elected, I will always put Selby first. That’s what I did on Selby District Council, and that’s what I’ll do as Selby’s Member of Parliament; and residents can trust me on that, because I live in Selby, as do my family and friends, and I will have to live with the decisions I make.”

“My priority will be focusing on local issues, such as flooding, rural crime, doctors’ appointments and delivering on levelling up. As a school governor, I’m also keen to support the schools in our area in maintaining their ‘Good’ or ‘Outstanding’ Ofsted statuses."

Charles also pledges to flight for the future of Drax Power station, which has 1,200 employees, recalling the closure of the Selby Coalfield in 2002.

He said: “I was doing an industrial placement at Wistow Mine, at the exact time of the announcement to close the Selby Coalfield in Spring 2002. I remember the devastating impact that had on people’s lives and the area, and I don’t want to see that happen again.

“As MP I will fight tooth and nail to ensure Drax gets the long-term commitment it needs from the Government to adapt and continue. Not least for energy security because Drax provides 11% of the UK’s electric supply. The Selby district used to be the powerhouse of North Yorkshire – and we need to protect what industry we have left.”

Charles, who voted for Brexit in 2016, told the Press Rishi Sunak is the best candidate to lead the Tories into the General Election, but should there be a vacancy, he would favour Penny Mourdant as leader.