Paralympians an inspiration - Brown

Praising them for their impressive medal haul at the Beijing Paralympic Games this year, the Prime Minister quipped that gold was going up in value.

He addressed members of the 206-strong squad at a reception at the British Museum in London, telling them it was a "huge privilege" to be thanking them on behalf of the UK for what they had achieved.

He said: "I hope you've managed to witness, since you've been back from Beijing, how much the British public supports you and how proud they are of what you've done.

"From the youngest athlete to the oldest, from the smallest team to the biggest, you inspired the nation with your stunning performance."

He also regaled them with a story about meeting Amy Winehouse and Nelson Mandela and joked that the youngest ever individual Paralympic gold medallist, 13-year-old swimmer Ellie Simmons, who won two gold medals, should join his next Cabinet meeting so she could "make better decisions than we do".

But for dressage silver medallist Ricky Balshaw, the highlight of the evening was exchanging a "high five" with the Prime Minister.

"The lads at home put me up to it," he said.

Olympics minister Tessa Jowell also thanked the squad members for their achievements.

She said: "From watching you in Beijing I learned there's no distinction between ability and disability. Some of us only dream of getting close to what you can do."