Appointing the Members

Local Authority Members must be serving councillors of their appointing local authority.

The Environment Act requires the local authority to have regard to the desirability of appointing Members who represent divisions or wards situated wholly or partly within the National Park boundary. They should also have relevant experience and close links to the Park. Councillors must stand for re-election to their council every four years.

Six of the Members appointed by the Secretary of State for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs are selected for their ability to represent a wider national viewpoint and for their specialist experience in relation to the particular character of the National Park.

These Secretary of State appointed Members are usually appointed for a period of up to four years, but each Member can be re-appointed although this is usually limited to a maximum of ten years in total.

For enquiries about Secretary of State appointments please contact: Defra, Sponsorship, Landscape and Recreation Division, Zone 1/03, Temple Quay House, 2 The Square, Temple Quay, Bristol, BS1 6EB. Tel No: 0117 372 8086 or 0117 372 8033. Email: nationalparks.aonbs@defra.gsi.gov.uk. For further details visit the DEFRA website page: http://www.defra.gov.uk/rural/national-parks/about-npa.htm Four Parish Members are also appointed by the Secretary of State, they are elected by Parish Councils in the National Park. Parish Members must be either a Parish Councillor or the Chairman of a Parish Meeting.

The elections are administered by the Yorkshire Local Councils Association. The successful candidates are then nominated to the Secretary of State for appointment.