MP TAKES AMBLESIDE CAMPAIGN TO WESTMINSTER

Local MP Tim Farron will tonight present a petition on the floor of the House of Commons protesting against the closure of Ambleside Campus at the University of Cumbria.

Under current plans the campus would be closed to undergraduate students from 2012 with over half of the University's buildings sold off.

Mr Farron will present the petition after the close of business in the Commons today at around 10pm.

Commenting Mr Farron said:

"Keeping Ambleside Campus open to undergraduate students will guarantee a strong profile for our area, maintain a vibrant community with a balanced age range and give underlying strength to the local economy. Removing undergraduates from Ambleside would threaten all of this.

"Hundreds of local people have signed this petition and that shows how committed the community is to stopping this closure from happening. Now that the issue has national attention, I hope that the University will take notice of level of protest against this proposal and will reconsider their decision to downgrade Ambleside Campus - which is the University of Cumbria's only campus in the south of the County."