Keen mountaineer Andy MacNae has been reflecting on the challenges of scaling his latest political peak, as he returns to Westminster as the new MP for Rossendale and Darwen.

The 59-year-old former councillor seized the constituency back for Labour in the July 4 General Election, after 14 years of being represented by Tory Jake Berry.

One of the party's five newly elected East Lancashire MPs, he spoke to Local Democracy Reporter Bill Jacobs about his background, hopes for the future, and the problems of getting to grips with Parliament's corridors and procedures as the House Commons reassembled after a short late summer break.

Married to Vanessa, he has a seven-year-old son Alexander and has spoken movingly in the past about losing their daughter Mallorie, who died when she was just five days old from the genetic condition Edward’s Syndrome.

A qualified astrophysicist, Mr MacNae was a Rossendale councillor from 2011 to 2024 holding key roles for leisure and regeneration.

The key issues are transport, the state of the roads, road safety, buses and the need for a rail link.

He is particularly proud of the role he played in the Townscape Heritage Initiative for Bacup, where he lives.

Mr MacNae is also a keen cyclist and has been boss of the Venture Extreme Consultancy Limited, giving him an even keener interest in sports and other outdoor activities.

On his personal history, said: "I was born down south but my father was in the Royal Air Force and then flew commercial jets, so we moved around a lot.

"I went to university in London to study astrophysics and later did a master's degree in energy policy and an MBA at Manchester Business School.

We are aware of the scale of the challenge and some of the very tough decisions that will be required to get the economy and public services back on track.

"I climbed essentially full-time through my 20s and early 30s, taking part in 14 expeditions to the great mountain ranges.

"I went on to become the national officer and deputy chief executive at the British Mountaineering Council.

"I have lived in Rossendale for the past 20 years and ran the innovative PEER (People Encouraging Enterprise in Rossendale) project for seven years.

"I have been chief executive of a leading adventure sports consultancy for the past 10 years and for the last six years have also been a trustee director of Cycling UK.

"My hobbies are climbing and cycling."

With a constituency spread across the Rossendale Valley and Darwen, Mr MacNae represents a host of towns, villages and hamlets.

Fixing the connections between these places is at the top of his agenda to improve the quality of life for residents.

He said: "The key issues in the constituency I propose to address as an MP are transport, the state of the roads, road safety, buses and the need for a rail link.

"Also crime and anti-social behaviour, the regeneration of our towns, and bringing good new jobs here, along with early years education and giving kids the best start in life.

"The key national issues for me are similar to the above plus sport and active lifestyles."

Adapting to life in Westminster has been a new challenge for Mr MacNae, with its rabbit-warren corridors, ancient customs and traditions and maze of offices and meeting rooms.

He added: “It is hard to believe it has only been a couple of months since the general election!

"It has been a very intense few weeks getting up to speed with parliamentary procedure, finding my way around, getting sworn in and doing my maiden speech.

"But there is a really positive atmosphere with over 200 new Labour MPs all very focused on making a difference.

"But at the same time we have become ever more aware of the scale of the challenge and some of the very tough decisions that will be required to get the economy and public services back on track.

"We all feel a great sense of responsibility and know we need to deliver real change.

"For my part I want to focus on what matters to residents in Rossendale and Darwen and I am currently working hard to get constituency offices set up and a team in place.”