Seaton's plight heard in the House of Commons

CONCERNS that Tesco could dominate Seaton have been raised in the House of Commons by newly-elected Tiverton and Honiton MP Neil Parish.

Making his maiden speech as an MP, the former MEP said: "It is now a beautiful seaside town, but it suffers from having a proposed Tesco supermarket on its outskirts.

"We are rather fearful that it may dominate too much of Seaton and destroy some of our local shops."

Mr Parish, who was speaking during a debate on the environment, food and rural affairs, following the Queen's speech, also referred to Axminster's long history of making carpets.

"As we walk around the corridors of this House, we think of Axminster and its famous carpets, because many carpets in this House were manufactured there," he said.

"In fact, replacement new carpets for the House are still manufactured in the town and I have seen them being made."

Mr Parish praised the work of his predecessor, Angela Browning, for her years of service to the Tiverton and Honiton constituency.

He particularly paid tribute to her work in raising awareness of autism, a subject that is close to her heart.

He pointed out she is patron of Autism Research and Vice-President of the National Autistic Society.