Politicians from all parties flock to historic beer event in Birmingham

Were they keen on meeting Casey, the beautiful shire horse, or did they just fancy a free glass of Davenport 's tasty mild?

We 'll probably never know what tempted them, but West Midlands politicians of all political persuasions were drawn like a magnet last week to a pub in Birmingham city centre.

From West Midlands Conservative mayor Andy Street to stalwart Labour MPs John Spellar and Khalid Mahmood, the famous ballot-box names just loved having their pictures snapped in front of Davenports ' horse-drawn dray outside the Bulls Head on Bishopsgate Street, in the city's Westside area.

The relaunch of the brewery 's 'Beer at Home ' service on Friday 3 December even persuaded two old political rivals to be seen together, with Sir Albert Bore and Paul Tilsley, former Labour leader and Liberal Democrat deputy leader respectively of Birmingham city council, also enjoying the event.

Mike Olley, general manager of Westside BID - and himself a former Labour councillor - said: “It was great that Davenports chose Westside for the relaunch of their historic home delivery service, and we were thrilled to have attracted the full spectrum of the region 's political greats. ”

Pictured: Mike Olley and Andy Street

Credit: Elaine Weir