A BRADFORD peer has been named Yorkshire Man of the Year in the 2016 Yorkshire Awards.

Held last night at the Hilton Leeds City hotel, the annual awards seek to recognise those who have had an impact on Yorkshire and its people, demonstrating their affection for and commitment to the county.

In May Lord Kemlesh Patel (pictured) stepped down as chairman of both the district’s Producer City Board and the Bradford Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust after being given a new senior role in the Commonwealth of Nations, a network of 53 countries spanning all six continents and housing a third of the world’s population, after being head-hunted by its new Secretary-General, Baroness Scotland of Asthal.

Skipton’s Chris Leech MBE, the man behind the Station-to-Station Queen’s Celebration to mark the monarch’s 90th birthday, received the Special Award.

The Yorkshire Awards raises thousands of pounds for charity each year and includes a grand raffle and charity auction.