'PUT BLACK COUNTRY ON THE MAP!' - EURO MP JOINS CAMPAIGN

12.00.00am GMT Wed 21st Nov 2007

The Black Country occupies a unique place in the region, the country and indeed in world history. It is home to some 1.2 million people with a distinct culture and yet if you look for it on any official map, you would be at a loss to find it. However all this could be about to change if a growing campaign is successful.

Local Euro MP Liz Lynne has represented the region in the European Parliament for the past eight years, so when she learned of the Black Country's campaign for recognition via the local chamber of commerce, she enthusiastically joined it.

Liz Lynne said:

"I was delighted when I heard about this initiative. Of course local people know it's unique and don't need telling about the history, the fantastic work ethic and the warm, friendly people, but it does seem unfair that this important area is nowhere to be found on a map.

"This great place, the cradle of the industrial revolution that changed the world for good, deserves more recognition as a destination in its own right and a great place to live and work, so I have now written to the Ordnance Survey to give my support to the campaign and ask that they give it serious consideration."

ENDS

Notes to Editors:

Legend has it that Elihu Burritt, the American Consul in Birmingham in 1862, described the area as 'black by day, red by night'. Many authors refer to it as an area in its own right, from Charles Dickens to William Shenstone and Francis Brett Young, and the last two also lived locally.

Liz Lynne was contacted by the Black Country Chamber of Commerce: www.blackcountrychamber.co.uk

Black Country Tourism: www.blackcountrytourism.co.uk/