RIBBLE Valley MP Nigel Evans was yesterday elected to serve on the International Development select committee.

Select committees oversee the work of Government Departments, holding them and their Ministers to account and members of select committees are elected by members of their own party.

Speaking from Westminster after the result Mr Evans said: “I am absolutely delighted to have been successfully elected to this important committee and look forward to serving on it. International development is an issue I deeply care about and I firmly believe that our investment in international aid gives Britain standing in the world and demonstrates our collective compassion.

"I am a strong supporter of the Government’s commitment to spending 0.7 per cent of GDP on international aid, and will use my position on the committee to advocate other advanced economies doing the same.

"The world is facing some profound challenges, such as the migration crisis in the Mediterranean, the continuing Ebola outbreak in West Africa and instability in the Middle East. Britain’s commitment to International Development will, in time, improve these situations.”