TIVERTON MP Neil Parish has accepted an invitation to become patron of equine charity People4ponies.

People4ponies is an equine charity based near Witheridge in Devon dedicated to helping wild and traumatised ponies - and Parish said he was “delighted and honoured” to have been invited into the role.

He said: “I am delighted and honoured to have been invited to become patron of People4ponies. Faye and her team do an amazing job caring for ponies and finding them new homes.

“I look forward to continuing my support for their work and to promote equine welfare.”

A statement from the charity said: “We are delighted to announce that Neil Parish, MP for Tiverton and Honiton, has accepted our invitation to become a patron of equine charity People4ponies.

“We really appreciate all the help and support that Neil has given us with our campaigning work and we wanted to recognise his efforts in improving the welfare of wild ponies and equines.

“Neil's efforts have been vital in getting issues such as hot branding discussed in Parliament.”