When my family moved to the UK I was just a year old, a baby brought here by parents searching for opportunity.
They came for what Britain stood for: good education for their children, the chance to work hard, to own a home, and to build a better future. And they did exactly that. With hard work they bought their council flat, thanks to Margaret Thatcher. In time they opened a small café and turned it into a restaurant. Years later my siblings and I followed in their footsteps, opening our own restaurants.
To me and to many families like mine, Britain is a country that welcomes aspiration, rewards hard work, values family and looks confidently to the future. It is a fair and tolerant country.
It’s in Somerset that I was able to buy my first home and open my business, and I’m proud of that. I’m proud of the opportunities this country can provide, and proud of what we are all able to achieve here.
It’s also the simpler things that make Britain special - down the pub after a hard day at work, fish and chips on a Friday night, watching Britain’s Got Talent on a Saturday with a curry, and sitting down for a roast dinner with family on a Sunday.
We all value and have pride in Britain for different reasons - this is my pride in Britain.
I wasn’t born British, I was born Portuguese. I became British through choice and through pride. I earned that right, and I’m proud to hold dual nationality 
I stand proudly with both the Union Jack and the Somerset flag behind me, proud of the country that gave my family opportunity and proud of the county I call home.
