A Welshpool woman has spoken of her heart break after her step-father was jailed over her mother's death and the death of a friend in a road crash.

Christine Evans, 53, and Barbara Jones, 63, died on the M42 in Warwickshire, in January, after a van struck the stationary car that they were passengers in. On Tuesday, Ms Evans' partner, James Graham Davies, 71, was jailed for two years and four months at Warwick Crown Court for causing their deaths by dangerous driving.

Davies, from Welshpool, parked his car in the fast lane of the motorway as he went to ask a Highways Agency worker for directions, after becoming lost in the early hours of January 5.

He and the worker could only watch as a van collided with his car, killing his partner, Ms Evans and his friend, Ms Jones.

James Graham Davies, who was jailed at Warwick Crown Court.

Lisa Evans, Ms Evans' daughter, said she and her family have been left shattered by the death of her mother and now by the imprisonment of her step-father.

She said: "I've never held what happened against Graham.

"I don't look at him and think he killed my mum. I look at him and think 'poor bloke'."

Lisa Evans said Mr Davies had never shied away from his part in what happened and made sure he was the one who broke the news of Ms Evans' death individually to family members.

She added: "We will continue to work together as a family to bring him (Graham) through the next 14 months. We will continue as a family to provide a support network for him and not turn our blame on him.

"He shouldn't have parked where he did and in a split second he made the wrong decision and it has cost him two lives, but there is no animosity.

"Mum wouldn't have wanted any of this and wouldn't have wanted to see him go to prison."

Lisa Evans said her mum was a "well loved person" and is missed "terribly" by the whole family. She added: "She was a beautiful person and she would give you the last pound in her purse if you needed it and never ask for it back.

"We are all in the same boat, both sides have lost their mother. All of us have lost somebody."

The families of Christine Evans and Barbara Jones were both at Warwick Crown Court to hear the conclusion of the case.