Labour leader Ed Miliband chose his local newspaper today to announce he is to marry his long-term partner.

News of the announcement was carried exclusively in today’s edition of the Doncaster Free Press before being picked up by the national media.

Mr Miliband, who is MP for Doncaster, will wed barrister Justine Thornton on May 27 at a country house hotel close to the bride’s childhood home in Nottinghamshire.

The happy couple, who have been together for six years and have two sons, asked Free Press editor Graeme Huston to meet with them at Westminster to reveal their plans for the big day.

Graeme told HTFP: “Ed’s team were in touch last week and we were delighted to work with them to get the story and interview. Ed’s always been friend of the paper since he was first elected and nothing’s changed since his move up to the Labour leadership.

“We’ve worked with him before on other projects and it’s nice that he and Justine feel they can trust us in this way to deliver a story that is clearly important to them.”

It was Ms Thornton’s first press interview and the exclusive story went live on the Free Press website at 7.45am this morning.

The couple told the newspaper they had been planning to get married since around March last year and that Mr Miliband’s election to the Labour leadership had not altered their plans.

Mr Miliband said: “This is going to be a fantastic day for us both and I feel incredibly priviliged to be marrying someone so beautiful and who is such a special person. It’s the right time for us to do this and I’m really looking forward to a lovely day.

“At the end of the day we’re in our 40s and we’ve got two kids – so it wasn’t a case of me suddenly popping the question. This is just something we think is right for us.”

Added his fiancee: “Ed wasn’t even an MP when I met him and at the end of the day I am marrying him because of who he is and not because of what he’s doing now.

“We’re planning on a small ceremony, all at the hotel with everything at the same place and we’re looking forward to it very much.”