I’m on a mission to improve people’s lives.

I have achieved this through careers in teaching, road safety and sustainable travel. I have worked extensively with local and national government, including a decade across the whole of Cumbria. For several years I helped people in the Lake District, working for a national charity.

Noting our desperate need for food security, I should mention that I have farmed in Cumbria, raising rare breed sheep. And one of my projects for us here is to make wool a key insulation product for homes and other buildings. Insulation is essential for the success of any green energy solutions; and to combat the woes of the cost of living.

I have a caring interest in you and your families. When I worked for Highways, I helped to reduce road casualties across Whitehaven and Workington – especially in deprived wards. I also brought cycle training and young driver safety training to schools, and increased walking and cycling to schools.

I am a trustee at the amazing Rock Youth Project which embeds youth work in the community and is expanding. Our young people need a positive voice.

As a Community Centre trustee I’m trying to ensure the future of all our excellent Community Centres and am planning to make them as energy self-sufficient as possible.

Volunteering for the National Trust gives me good motivation for getting out into our rural areas to keep them clean and tidy. I’m often doing this with my wife and our very athletic Red and White Setter. I’ve protected rare and endangered breeds of animals over the years, they are an important part of our heritage. Similarly, I’ve planted many native species of trees, including orchards that reflect our history, including apples such as the Egremont Russet.

As a Cumberland councillor I’m working every day to bring prosperity, good health and wellbeing to our region. Once, we were Cumbria. We can still be a region of Cumbria with the local authorities working together.

I believe my varied life experience and my political experience, and skills, will be invaluable in obtaining more investment and improvements in the constituency as your MP.

I will use my expertise in transport to achieve excellent road and rail links from the west coast to Carlisle, and down the coast to Barrow. Plus, I want to bring a new kind of local public transport to the area: the Taxi-Bus. This will enable a dial-up door to door service, keeping all the free and subsidised fares we now have.

I live in Cumbria and I see every single day the incredible potential we have; but I also see too many people who feel there is little hope for them to enjoy a better life. I can change this.

You can change this too: by joining my campaign and by voting Liberal Democrat for a fairer deal in the coming General Election.