KEETCH ENCOURAGES LOCALS TO HAVE A CUPPA FOR CANCER CHARITY

9.03.00am BST (GMT +0100) Fri 19th Sep 2003

Hereford's MP, Paul Keetch, is encouraging people in Herefordshire to join in Macmillan Cancer Relief's Worlds' Biggest Coffee Morning on Friday 26 September and raise money to help local people with cancer.

Each and every day 732 people are diagnosed with cancer and at the moment Macmillan can only be there for one in five of them. The World's Biggest Coffee Morning is now in its 13th year and has raised over £20 million to help people living with cancer. All over the UK people hold coffee mornings in their homes, at work and at school and this year the charity is hoping that even more people will join in. Being a part of the World's Biggest Coffee Morning can be as simple as putting the kettle on and asking friends, family or colleagues to have a coffee and make a donation for each cup they drink.

Paul Keetch said, "So many people are affected by cancer, either personally or through family or friends, and many of us have experience of the care and support Macmillan offers to people with cancer. The World's Biggest Coffee Morning is such a simple way to help raise funds for Macmillan. I hope as many people as possible in my constituency will join in. I will be popping along to the coffee morning being held at the main Post Office in High Town as well as my staff holding their own coffee morning to help raise funds for such a worthy cause."

To register to host your own coffee morning or to find out more please call the Macmillan Hotline of 0845 602 1246. For further information about Macmillan and the coffee morning you can also contact Ron Davies locally on 01432 343030.