“Unique and very special” honour for Walley

Walley, who has been an MP for 27 years and is chair of the Environmental Audit Committee, will leave the Commons at the next election.

She has been a CIEHvice president since first entering Westminster and the Institute said she has “championed environmental health at all the key legislative moments of the last 27 years,” including the Environmental Protection Act 1990, the Food Safety Act 1990 and the creation of the Food Standards Agency.

CIEHChief Executive Graham Jukes OBE said:

“Honorary membership of the CIEHis a unique and very special grade of membership only given to those who have dedicated their lives to improving the lives of others.

“Through her parliamentary work and in her support as a Vice President of the CIEH, Joan has provided such distinctive service and support that we felt it was a fitting tribute to publicly acknowledge the work she has done as she comes to the end of her parliamentary career.”

In 2004, Walley won the ePolitix Environment Champion Award.

In her resignation letter to her Stoke on Trent North constituency Labour party, she said:

“Investing in the right policies to secure the future we want in environmental terms - tackling environmental degradation and valuing nature - has always been and remains my mission.

“I regard my election by parliament to chair the Environmental Audit Select Committee as a great honour. You can be in no doubt that my chairmanship of that and indeed my work as constituency MP serving the interests of people here will continue right up until the referee blows the final whistle and the General Election is called in 2015.”