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Recently re-elected as the MP for Ribble Valley, Nigel Evans has lunch with the Prime Minister’s father in London and returns north to chat to schoolchildren about their quest to save the planet
In early December I attended a wonderful dinner with some of the UK’s most amazing composers including the fantastic Gary Osborne (Little Jeannie), Mitch Murray (I’m Telling You Now) and Tim Rice (Evita, Lion King, Aladdin). We really do have some tremendous talent!
I don’t want to boast, but one of my favourite people on earth is not the PM (although I think him wonderful) but his father. Stanley and I met up mid-December to lunch with friends and discuss his latest ventures. He has all the energy of his son with an incredible capacity to lighten any mood. He had just come hot foot from baking tarts with Boris, which did get me thinking where Boris finds all the time to do everything, but it was all filmed so I suspect we will all enjoy father and son in some sort of Johnson bake-off sometime soon.
I was delighted to meet some of the ladies behind the fund raising to pay for the brilliant lights that adorned Chipping over Christmas. The money raised helped to light up the village bringing all the community together.
Another project I visited was in Read and Simonstone at their morning coffee sessions. They now have two a week in the village hall and they bring local people together, chatting and making friends, which is tremendous.
I visited St Joseph’s School in Hurst Green where pupils taught me about their passion for caring for the planet and reducing all sorts of waste. These pupils are inspirational and I have promised to liaise with them about how we can reduce the packaging that produces so much waste. They are working with the Mayor of Longridge to help make Longridge plastic free. Well done them!
I was entertained by the Longridge and Clitheroe Bands recently playing carol concerts around the Valley. Clitheroe played at Gisburn Auction Mart and in Longridge we had the adult and junior bands playing to a packed audience.
I had an old friend come and see me during the election in Clitheroe – Coronation Street’s Bill Roache. Did you know he is the longest serving actor in any soap, in the world? The show attracts millions of viewers weekly and it was fun to see the warmth with which Bill was greeted as he toured the town.
Finally, may I thank everyone who gave me and my fellow candidates such a warm reception during the recent elections. I am honoured to serve my constituency for another five years and I will strive to do my best. I would like to pay tribute to all the teams who helped each candidate get their messages across, especially delivering leaflets in the freezing weather and constant rain.
I sometimes think politicians could learn so much from looking at what brings people together, not what divides them. If we could only work a little harder co-operating rather than bickering, think how much better and effective our Parliament could work.
