A PASSIONATE local politician who represented Skipton residents for more than 23 years reflected this week about her life as a Liberal councillor.

Coun Claire Brooks, now retired, was notorious in the council chamber for her sometimes fiery speeches, but also for her firm principles.

Claire was born in 1930 at The Folly in Settle, the daughter of Arthur and Clara Grace Graham. Her father Arthur was a staunch Liberal and Claire said she was brought up with this philosophy.

"I used to listen to my father and his friends talking politics and there were always discussions and rows going on in the house. It was those occasions which taught me everything about political philosophy and the basic principles behind it all," she said.

Claire, who showed early academic promise and taught herself to read by the age of three, was educated at Settle Primary School.

In 1940, during the Second World War, she was schooled in America for several months. Even at the age of nine, Claire was engrossed by the political scene and stayed up all night to watch Franklin Roosevelt elected to the presidency.

The family returned home and she won a scholarship to Settle High School and then boarded at Skipton Girls' High School.

Claire joined the Liberal Party in her school years but it was when she studied law at the University College London that her passion for politics erupted.

She said: "At university I was totally political and soon became the vice president of the joint men's and women's student union and the acting president of the women's union."

It was when Claire finished university and was doing her articles, that she was adopted as the Liberal Parliamentary candidate for Skipton and fought the parliamentary election in 1959. Although she did not win, she got 27 per cent of the poll.

During this time Claire was also juggling her legal career with her politics and it was while working as a solicitor for a company in Scarborough that she was married in 1962.

For most of the 1960s Claire had to put her interest in local British politics on the back burner, as she accompanied her husband on business to first Trinidad, then Australia and America.

Even while abroad, Claire became involved in the political scene and while in America in 1968 she became joined the American election campaign for George McGovern in the primary and presidential elections when he was running against Richard Nixon.

Claire returned to the area in 1973, and was again chosen by the Liberals to fight the Skipton seat. She gave the Tories the biggest fright of their life in a seat they had come to regard as almost theirs by right, reducing their majority to less than 600.

Her high profile, quickfire delivery and passionate rhetoric meant she was more than a match for most political opponents and regularly appeared on television.

After setting up her own solicitor's practice in Skipton in 1975, she went on to fight in the 1976 council elections and won the Skipton Central Ward, a position she stood down from this month after a total of 23 years on Craven District Council.

One of the highlights of Claire's career was when she was awarded the OBE for her long and dedicated service in the political and public arena.

During her many years on Craven District Council, Claire acted as group leader for 12 years and served as chairman of the council and chairman of the policy and resources committee. She also served as Mayor of Skipton in 1985-86.

Claire added that she had thoroughly enjoyed her political career and had enjoyed fighting many battles.

Some of the issues which have been close to Claire's heart as a councillor included her campaign to stop the council buying Raikeswood Hospital, which she said would have led to bankruptcy for the council in the long term.

Another battle which Claire is very proud of winning was the debate on the issue of Skipton Town Hall letting fees.

She said: "This has been one of the issues during my time as a councillor that I felt very strongly about and I wanted to make sure that at the end of the day my constituents were looked after."

When asked if Skipton had changed in the years she had represented it, Claire said she thought Skipton was still a "unique" town.

She said: "I think over the years we have done very well in Skipton to fight off the developers and we now have got something very unique as you can still see the old parts of Skipton.

"It still has the quality of its early history and would be recognised by those long gone. I think the council has done well in preserving so much."

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