A POLITICIAN'S Grand National winnings have been donated to help blind and visually impaired people.

Alok Sharma, MP for Reading West, presented £362.50 to Guide Dogs for the Blind after he placed a £50 bet on Tiger Roll to win the annual race.

It was the first time the Conservative politician had ever placed a bet and he decided to donate his cash windfall to charity.

He said: "I was obviously delighted to win some money for Guide Dogs for the Blind, which is such a deserving charity and it was great to have my four-legged buddy Olly with me at the presentation.

"A big thank you to Coral for the opportunity to place a charity bet.”

Mr Sharma presented a cheque to Denise Clarke, a community fundraising development worker for the charity.