Lib Dem President speaks at annual dinner

12.00.00am GMT Fri 14th Nov 2008

President of the Liberal Democrats Simon Hughes MP was guest speaker as the Rochdale Lib Dems celebrated their Annual Dinner at the Town Hall.

The night was deemed a huge success with people travelling from as far as London to attend.

Mr Hughes spoke about his time as President and of his belief that the Lib Dems are leading the way on the economy and how it was great to be back visiting Rochdale.

Simon congratulated the Rochdale's Liberal Democrats for their success in both the local and general elections and said they were a shining example for Lib Dems across the country.

Paul Rowen MP said: "Simon is a great guest to have at any dinner party and it was a privilege to have him in Rochdale tonight. He has done a great job for us as our President and continues to do a superb job in Parliament as well.

"Our Annual Dinner is always a great opportunity for our local members to get together socially and celebrate the continued success of our party in the Borough. This year the local party increased its majority on the council. We are in a strong position and it was great to hear Simon congratulating us on that."

Leader of Rochdale Council Alan Taylor said: "I am delighted that Simon has taken the time to visit us once more. He has proven over the years that he is a great friend of Rochdale.

"Under his presidency the Liberal Democrats have grown stronger both here in Rochdale and across the rest of the country and I would like to thank him for the continuous support he has shown us. Even though his time as President of our party will shortly be coming to an end, I have no doubt that he will continue to play a leading roll for us nationally."

Heywood North Councillor Peter Rush, who is providing Mr Hughes with his hospitality, said: "It's always great to welcome my good friend Simon back to the Borough. He visited Heywood only a few weeks ago and helped us in our campaign to save post office account cards.

"We also went around Heywood's MAGIC Market and he must have stopped to have a chat with every single person there. He is a real people politician and we are lucky to have him in our party."