I held a Teams call (from the car) with Cllr Raj Mehta, former Mayor of Telford & Wrekin. He is a doctor and practice manager in Birmingham and his wife is a doctor based in Telford.
Cllr Mehta is a very interesting man. He speaks seven languages and has had various professions including being a police officer, bodyguard and interpreter for MI5.
He has set up the local Interfaith Council, with the aim of binding various faith groups and, as importantly, encouraging respect between the generations. He runs a charity called Building Bridges (visit http://www.communitiesbuildingbridges.com/ )
At the end of his mayoral year, he celebrated with a ball entitled East and West. The dress code required guests to dress up in a different culture’s clothing – Lord Lieutenant of Shropshire Anna Turner arrived in Indian regalia.
Councillor Mehta has invited me to speak at one of his interfaith meetings, which I look forward to.