AN award-winning journalist says he felt “honoured” to be included in the New Year’s Honours List in recognition of his dedication to keeping Coggeshall’s streets clean.

Brian Mooney has been awarded a British Empire Medal for services to the community in the City of London and Coggeshall.

The journalist and author, who worked for the news agency Reuters for 30 years in more than 50 countries, helped set up the Coggeshall Litterati, a group of volunteer litter pickers which last year filled nearly 700 bin bags with rubbish collected in the town.

He said: “I am honoured to receive this award, particularly for the contribution I have made to the ward of Queenhithe in the City of London over 25 years, and for the work of the Coggeshall Litterati which is very much a team effort.”

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A long-distance walker and mountaineer, Brian is a Fellow of the Royal Geographical Society and has a degree in History and French from the University of Oxford.

He was first elected to the City of London Corporation’s top decision-making body in 1998 to represent the Queenhithe ward.

Since leaving Reuters, Brian has worked in international PR and has published six books and written for several newspapers and magazines.