ON Thursday night Grant Shapps, Conservative Party Chairman and MP for Welwyn and Hatfield visited Stroud for a dinner at The Hill, in Stroud.

The dinner was attended by 70 Conservative activists, all keen to hear about Party policy and the forthcoming European and local elections.

Mr Shapps was very interested to meet and hear from two of Stroud Conservatives youngest ever candidates TIm Williams who will be standing for Bisley and Jamie Cipriani who is the Conservative candidate for Whiteshill and Ruscombe.

He was very impressed at Jamie running the London Marathon for the St Johns Ambulance and at TIm's enthusiasm for road safety in Bisley.

Whilst at the fund raising dinner the Tory chairman also praised local volunteer and activist Pam Evans from Hardwicke who received a Lifetime Achievement Award for over 60 years of working for the Party in both Yorkshire and Gloucestershire.