The Green Party will field two candidates in Keighley during next month’s district council elections.

Barbara Archer, 57, will be standing for Keighley West, and Rohman Ali, 20, will stand for Keighley Central.

Mrs Archer, of North Dean Avenue, said: “We have a serious ongoing issue with insensitive housing development.

“There is presently a general approach to town planning that is unsuitable for Keighley’s unique topology.

“If we don’t defend it, we could lose much of our natural and semi-natural heritage forever.”

She added: “The younger population are being told they should lower their standards when it comes to prospects in our area. This is not acceptable. I am further concerned about falling standards of care for our aging population.”

Mr Ali, of Victoria Road, said: “Keighlians are told they have a growing population that will need to be housed, but then we see there is a threat to greenfield sites.

“The reality is we have plenty of brownfield sites to build on, and we in the Green Party will press to see these are developed first, so our farmland can be retained for the production of locally-produced food.”

He added: “Youth unemployment is a serious problem that needs to be addressed. This could be much reduced through a targeted local development plan that creates the conditions for business growth and employment opportunities.”