Kevin Horkin

Kevin Horkin is a TV pet consultant and presenter who has appeared on a number of animal-themed TV programmes, as well as a Lancashire business owner, and charitable fundraiser who contested the Hyndburn Parliamentary Constituency on behalf of the Conservative Party in the 2015 General Election.

Career

Horkin left school at 16 to start his own business. He opened his first stall in the town on Accrington Market selling clothing and jewellery. He opened his first shop called ‘The Eye Shop’ in Warner Street, in Accrington.^[1][2][3] He was instrumental in challenging the opticians' monopoly on the sale of over the counter ready reading glasses by writing to all MPs asking Margaret Thatcher to repeal the Opticians Act of 1958 and in 1987 won a case against that monopoly.^[4][5] The General Optical Council took out simultaneous private prosecutions in an attempt to stop the sale of ready made reading spectacles ^[6][7] Horkin successfully fought the actions by the General Optical Council.^{[8][9][10][11]} He subsequently re-branded his business from The Eye Shop to Spex Opticians opening 22 branches across Lancashire, Greater Manchester & Merseyside.^[12][13]

Horkin has been a regular contributor and pet consultant to many TV programmes including the This Morning with Richard & Judy, ^[14]The Big Breakfast, Nickelodeon and Blue Peter. Through his Pet Role - Star Pet Agency he went on to provide animals for a number of T.V. Programmes. The Pet Role agency's list of credits includes T.V. Programmes Coronation Street, ^[15][16]ITV's Touch of Frost, The Sooty and Sweep Show, You’ve Been Framed, Albion Market, Emmerdale Farm, Families, Sherlock Holmes, Stars In Their Eyes, Prime Suspect and Where the Heart is.^[17] He has also appeared as a Pet Expert in The Pet Set (2003) a 6 Programme Series exploring our relationship with pets & Animal Tales (2004).^{[18][19][20][21][22][23][24][25][26]} Horkin launched Pet Centric - opening 7 Pet Stores across East Lancashire on the back of his role as a Pet Consultant.^{[27][28][29][30][31]}

Horkin is an experienced writer, national newspaper celebrity pet columnist, and contributor to a variety of magazines. His Pet People column appeared in The Sunday People Newspaper from January 1995 onwards and included Letters from readers in a weekly Questions and Answers feature. ^[32] The column in The Sunday People was renamed Pets And Their People in March 1998. ^[33] He has also been a regular columnist for national magazines such as TV Times on its Animal page, ‘Mad about Dogs’ and Sainsbury's Pet Club Monthly Magazine in which he had a Pet features columm.^[34][35]

As an actor Horkin has appeared in a number of TV Dramas including the Comedy Drama Catwalk Dogs.^[36][37][38]

Horkin is also Media Director of Our Dogs, a position he has held since 2000.^[39]

Political career

Between 1987 and 1991, Horkin was elected as a Councillor on Hyndburn Borough Council rising to the role of Group Whip for the Conservative Group. He was elected as the Councillor for the Altham Ward obtaining 253 Votes or 40.1% of the Vote.^[40] Horkin was also Joint Coordinator for the Hyndburn Constituency in 1987 for the re-election campaign for Ken Hargreaves MP.^[41] During the Conservative Party Leadership contest between Margaret Thattcher and Michael Heseltine Newsnight filmed a special programme which was broadcast live from Horkin's house in Oswaldwistle involving interviews with Hyndburn Conservative Councillors. The interviews were conducted by Jeremy Paxman.^[42] Horkin also took part in a discussion on the Granada TV programme Upfront on so called Acid House parties arguing in favour of bringing them under the existing licensing legislation. He argued that this would allow local authorities to better control the time the parties could go on for and the permitted noise levels that would be allowed so as not to disturb nearby local residents. Horkin argued in a letter to the then Home Secretary, David Waddington, which was widely publicised in the press of the need to create a safe controlled environment for the parties to take place in rather than the unsafe warehouses in the middle of nowhere they were typically held in. He also proposed stiff penalties for transgressing licensing arrangements. ^{[43] [44]}

In 2010, Horkin stood for elected office in the neighbouring authority of Ribble Valley. He contested the St.Mary's Ward in May, 2011 achieving 502 Votes or 47.27% of the vote.^[45]

Horkin was elected to Clitheroe Town Council for the Clitheroe St. Mary's Ward receiving 499 Votes and beating incumbent Simon Entwistle by one vote.^[46][47] Horkin was appointed Mayor of Clitheroe for the Civic Year 2013-2014. During his period in office, he launched the Clitheroe Community Fund.^[48][49][50]

2015 General Election

Horkin was selected on 15 January 2015, by local Conservative Party members as their prospective parliamentary candidate to contest the Hyndburn parliamentary seat.^[51][52] Horkin was selected because of his high public profile and long history of involvement in local politics.

Horkin lost to Labour's Graham Jones by 4400 votes, a decrease of 2% in the Conservative vote compared to 2010. Horkin finished second taking 31.9% of the vote.^[53]

Philanthropic activity

In July 1993 Horkin organised the first of 7 annual trips to a children's orphanage in Car Bun Nesta, Romania to help sight damaged orphans whose eye site had been damaged by genetic eye disorders and inadequate lighting in the gloomy orphanage where they were brought up. In the first visit a team of staff including 3 opticians dispensed glasses to 140 orphans and 298 local residents.^[54][55]

Since 2009, Horkin has been a Board Member of the Development Advisory Group of the Community Foundation for Merseyside & Lancashire, a charitable trust which helps donors to support their community by channelling money into community projects.^[56][57] Following an invitation from Samantha Cameron^[58] Horkin has organised a number of Special Children's Christmas Parties for Disabled Children at Number 10 Downing Street including one hosted by Ant and Dec.^[59][60][61] In 2014, Horkin received a Lifetime Legends of Industry Award from the Variety Club of Great Britain for his work with the Foundation.^[62][63]

Horkin has been patron of ‘The Kirsty Appeal’ named after Kirsty Howard^[64] helping to raise in excess of £5 million for an extension for Francis House Children's Hospice in Manchester.^[65] As recognition of his philanthropic work he was Awarded Lancashire Community Philanthropist of the Year in 2011.^[66]

In 1990 Horkin also founded the Pet Role Trust, a registered charitable trust promoting responsible pet ownership and devoted to improving animal health & welfare through charitable fund-raising - primarily for the Kennel Club Health Foundation and Manchester Dog's Home - the largest in the country.The Pet Role Trust also distributes cash to smaller, lesser known animal charities.^[67][68]

The Pet Role Trust was established against the background of the Public debate surrounding the Dangerous Dogs Act 1991 introduced by the then Home Secretary, Kenneth Baker Kenneth Baker with the emphasis being on responsible public ownership rather than euthanasia.^[69][70] The controversial aspects of the Dangerous Dogs Act 1991 or the Baker Bill as it became known related to the intention to have American Pit Bull Terriers "humanely destroyed" in other words "put to sleep". Horkin launched a campaign of national publicity in the press and on Radio and TV organising a march on Parliament.^[71][72][73] He received over 12,000 Letters from the General Public and set up a 24 Hour Telephone Hotline to deal with calls from animal lovers concerned about the bill and who wanted to take part.^[74] The police said it was illegal to hold a march so Horkin organised a mass lobby of MPs instead. Horkin wrote to the Home Secretary, all MPs and the Chair of the Parliamentary Animal Welfare Committee in protest. 620 people took part.^[75] The meeting was attended by 40 MPs including Ken Hargreaves Horkin's local MP and 60 journalists.^[76] Within 24 hours of the mass lobby the euthanasia provisions of the bill were abandoned.^[77][78]

References