MONDAY saw the start of the Chinese New Year – the Year of the Monkey.

Also known as the Spring Festival, celebrations traditionally run from the evening before the first day to the Lantern Festival, on the 15th day of the calendar month.

It is a centuries-old tradition and is celebrated worldwide as an occasion to honour deities as well as ancestors.

According to legend the beginning of the Chinese New Year began with a mythical beast called the Nian which would eat villagers – especially children!

To protect themselves people would put food in front of their doors at the beginning of every year in the hope the Nian would eat the food rather than the occupants of the house.

One day a god visited a villager and told him to put red paper and firecrackers on his house – because the Nian was afraid of the colour red.

Eventually the Nian never came to the village again and was ultimately captured and tamed.

But unlike our traditional Hogmanay and New Year celebrations, Chinese New Year is not a time for partying or meeting up with friends at the pub – it is a time when people come together for ‘reunion dinner’ with family members who have returned home.

In fact, some commentators describe it as the world’s greatest annual migration of people with huge numbers taking advantage of the opportunity to travel either home, to be with loved ones or to go on holiday. One estimate is that nearly three BILLION trips will be taken over the New Year festival period.

So this is the Chinese Year of the Monkey. People born in the year of the Monkey are quick witted, intelligent and playful. They are mischievous but well-intentioned jokers who love to play pranks but don’t mean to cause harm.

It is another example of the many diverse cultures, festivals and celebrations which make up communities around the planet and indeed here in Inverclyde.

It helps us to remember we are all part of a rich and varied world and we have something to learn from each other.

Incidentally – I was born in the Year of the Snake. My main features – by all accounts – are intelligence, intuition and wisdom. It makes me thoughtful and private – and though I don’t say much, when I do, I say it well. So there you are!

Finally I would just like to congratulate Inverclyde Council which has been voted the Best Government Services employer in the UK at the Bloomberg Business Best Employer Awards 2016 The independent survey of employees across the UK ranked the council 61st out of all employers in Britain.

I am pleased that despite the pressures, employees in Inverclyde are responding so positively.