THERE were plaudits for Erith and Thamesmead MP John Austin as he stepped down from the chairmanship of the British Caribbean Association.
Mr Austin, who retires as an MP at the next election, has chaired the association for the last 10 years.
It was founded in response to the Notting Hill riots in 1958.
Paying tribute at the association’s annual tea party at the House of Commons, Professor Ian Hall described Mr Austin as “a good friend of the Caribbean and the Caribbean communities in London” He said Mr Austin had been “a tower of strength to the association”.
Mr Austin said he was sad at standing down, but had wanted to give the association time to find a new chairman before he leaves Parliament.
The association presented Mr Austin with the Royal Horticultural Society’s Encyclopaedia of Gardening.
John Hayes, Tory MP for South Holland and The Deepings, will be the new chairman.
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