Shooting and angling play a vital role in the countryside and will help provide a viable future for rural areas, senior Labour MP Huw Irranca-Davies has said.

The Shadow Minister for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs was speaking at a fringe meeting at party's Manchester conference.

While Labour brought in the hugely controversial hunting ban, the party has always distanced itself against claims it also wanted to outlaw other countryside sports.

Mr Irranca-Davies told the rural reception, organised by the British Association for Shooting and Conservation and the Angling Trust, that he wanted to work with them.

He said shooting and angling can help ensure a joined-up approach to the countryside environment and economy, and Labour had to use the expertise of rural people to provide solutions to problems.