Conservatives accused of ‘grade A hypocrisy’ over choice of candidate

A leading Liberal Democrat has criticised the Conservative’s choice of candidate to fight for Boris Johnson’s Henley seat in the coming by-election.
This follows an article in today’s Guardian which reported that John Howell, the Conservative candidate, is campaigning to keep the Green Belt while acting as a lobbyist for a planning company that advises housebuilders on contentious land and property deals.
The Chief Executive of the Lib Dems, Lord Rennard, said in a statement today: “The Conservatives may have made a major mistake in Henley. They have chosen someone who says that he wants to protect the countryside. People will be shocked to learn the truth that he is closely tied to developers who are desperate to build in controversial locations. This is grade A hypocrisy.”

Today a Conservative party spokesman confirmed that John Howell did work for Savill’s (where, it is reported, he provides communications and political lobbying consultancy on large and contentious land and property developments) but that Howell “had not worked on a single scheme in the green belt”.

Read the full article in the Guardian

Photo: Conservatice candidate, John Howells, with William Hague, on a tour of Thame Farmers Market on Tuesday.