Chris Huhne

Our local environment is priceless, and Chris Huhne and the Liberal Democrats have an outstanding record in protecting, conserving and improving the natural environment. Chris is pictured here with representatives of the Hampshire wildlife trusts who are running the project to safeguard the Itchen Navigation, the old Southampton to Winchester canal that is one of the first of the industrial revolution.

Chris has also backed improvements to the Itchen way, allowing ramblers and local walkers to go alongside the Itchen and the canal for many miles. He is here seen opening an improved section of the towpath. In the South of the constituency, Chris recently visited the Environment Agency project to allow salmon and trout up the Hamble river past the mill at Botley, which has been an obstacle for many hundreds of years. The new fish pass should enable the Hamble to become a salmon and trout river like the Itchen and the Test.

Eastleigh Borough is currently a so-called beacon council for its work on climate change, which means that its record is so good that the Government asks it to tutor other councils on how to improve. Pioneering schemes include the combined heat and power plant that generates both hot water and electricity for the Fleming Park leisure centre in Eastleigh, and for the Civic offices. Eastleigh is also one of the leaders across the UK in recycling with a scheme that now collects food waste separately from dry recyclables and refuse.