RIVAL political parties are considering forming ‘progressive alliances’ to try to oust both of the district’s Conservative MPs , the Telegraph & Argus can reveal.

A showdown between Conservative MP Philip Davies and the leader of the Women’s Equality Party, Sophie Walker, in Shipley is already shaping up to be one of the most dramatic fights of this year’s General Election.

The Green Party and the Liberal Democrats are already considering whether to stand aside to help Ms Walker in Shipley, with both holding separate meetings to discuss the issue on Thursday.

Now the Greens have suggested they could team up with Labour and the Lib Dems in Keighley too, all uniting behind a Labour candidate in a bid to unseat its MP, Kris Hopkins.

In a letter seen by the Telegraph & Argus, Janet Russell and Sian Levy, co-chairmen of the Keighley and Ilkley Green Party, claim that as a loyal Tory, Mr Hopkins will back Theresa May’s plans for a hard Brexit.

The letter says: “If we do not act together on this occasion to unseat the incumbent Conservative MP ... it may be many years before our country knows anything other than a Conservative government or the consequences of a damaging Brexit.”

It suggests the Greens would be happy to back a Labour candidate as long as they were local, against a hard Brexit and an opponent of controversial plans to build a waste-to-energy plant at Marley, which Mr Hopkins has been a vocal supporter of.

A spokesman for the Liberal Democrats said party members would debate the Greens' proposal for Keighley when they met on Thursday to discuss whether to stand in Shipley.

But Labour poured cold water on any suggestion of a pact in either constituency, with a spokesman saying: “We don’t do progressive alliances. We don’t do deals.”

The Greens confirmed they had been asked by the Women’s Equality Party not to field a candidate for Shipley, and are due to discuss the issue at a meeting on Thursday.

Matt Edwards, of Bradford Green Party, said it was “possible” they could agree to the plan, adding: “We and our members are in the process of discussing the offer.”

Mr Davies said his “campaign will not change”, regardless of who was or wasn’t standing against him, saying that was a matter for them.

Mr Hopkins added: “The democratic process is something to be celebrated and I welcome any challenge that comes along.”

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