James Monaghan

James was born and raised in Yorkshire and currently lives in Knaresborough with his partner, Hannah and their two young children.

James studied a BSC (Hons) in Physics with Space Technology at Leicester University, during which time he interned at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory and the Leicester Space Research Centre researching climate change. He has always had an interest in the old and the new and undertook research in the archaeological applications of satellite data.

After graduating James established a software development business, which he ran for several years in Leeds before selling the company. As a lifelong Liberal Democrat James was involved in campaigning in Leeds and was elected as a councillor to Leeds City Council.

As a Leeds councillor James was an Area Committee Chair and latterly Executive Member for the Environment where he chaired the Leeds Climate Change Partnership. James brought his enthusiasm for championing green issues to the role, which saw Leeds lead the way for commitments on tackling climate change during his tenure.

With the birth of their first child James and his partner Hannah moved to Knaresborough where James served on Knaresborough Town Council and was chair of Knaresborough Civic Society and involved in the Chamber of Trade. James is currently the director of a financial services company where he has worked for the past 10 years.

James is passionate about preserving our built heritage and the character of our towns and villages. James is no nimby but believes new housing should be built in sustainable locations with high quality design and be truly affordable.

James is a member of the Electoral Reform Society and a strong believer in making our voting system fairer.