High Peak is a marginal which has been the seat of Conservative Andrew Bingham (see here for some information about his voting record) since he won it from Labour in 2010.
Mr Bingham asked a question about the publication of the Hen Harrier non-joint non-plan back in November 2014:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, when she plans to publish the Uplands Stakeholder Forum hen harrier sub-group draft joint action plan.
Back a month or so, Lord Ashcroft was calling Labour as just a smidgeon in front of the Conservatives in this seat.
If you were one of the ‘Sodden 570’ then you have been in this constituency – as has Henry on his travels.
If I lived in Buxton, Glossop, Chapel-en-le-Frith, New Mills or Bamford then I’d be asking all the candidates what they thought of the lack of Hen Harriers in the Peak District and the role of grouse shooting in the local economy. At the moment we know that the Conservative/Liberal coalition government looked pretty cosy with grouse shooting, that the Labour Party will ‘review’ shooting and that the Green Party opposes all field sports including grouse shooting. but what do the local candidates have to say? If you ask them and get any answers I’d love to hear about them. It’s a marginal seat – might the Labour candidate come out against driven grouse shooting if pressed?
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Actually we should be asking those questions of all candidates that have grouse shooting within their constituencies or even in the general area. May be questions about the effect of massive pheasant releases every year on our native ecology or lead shot. If you are in Scotland about Mountain Hare culls. Make them aware that such issues are important to you and will affect the way you vote. Might even make them think, that would be a novelty for quite a few of them!
Can we also add the issue of badger culls to the shopping list please? ok not many constituencies but, harriers, badgers & mountain hares ….
I lived near High Peak for a while and there were hen harriers there at that time – about 20 years ago. I didn’t see them, just heard colleagues who had – I’ve only had that privilege in Scotland.