Stratford-on-Avon MP backs National Park bid

NATIONAL Park status will bring ‘significant benefits’ to the Cotswolds, according to Stratford-on-Avon's MP.

Part of Nadhim Zahawi’s constituency and his own constituency home in Tysoe are within the Cotswold Area of Natural Beauty (AONB), which is being promoted as a new National Park.

The drive is being led by Cotswolds MP, Sir Geoffrey Clifton-Brown, and supported by Cotswold District Council, with a government review of whether more should be established recently getting underway.

Mr Zahawi said: “I am fully supportive of Sir Geoffrey’s campaign and have been for some time.

“I met with the leadership of the Cotswolds Conservation Board last year where this idea was discussed and I am confident that a National Park status for the Cotswolds would bring significant benefits to what is one of the most beautiful parts of the UK.

“I welcome the opportunity that the government review of National Parks will provide in making this new status for the Cotswolds a possibility and I look forward to working with Sir Geoffrey and other MPs in the near future to see what progress can be made.”

National Park status offers another layer of protection to its landscape and wildlife, specifically on planning matters.

There are 15 in the UK, all run by independent bodies and funded by central government.