As I'm sure you’ve all heard, last Friday the Chancellor gave a fiscal statement which made some very significant changes. When the Prime Minister, Liz Truss, was campaigning for the leadership she very strongly committed to introducing measures to stimulate growth. The statement from the Chancellor made it very clear how they say this will be delivered. The intent is very clearly to attempt to grow the size of business in the UK, in order to generate more income that can be shared by all.
There will no doubt be press and social media commentary around some of the headline announcements, but like every strategy it is important to give it time to play out and see the holistic impact as opposed to any components. I think it is important that whatever strategy is employed, decisive action is taken and followed through. It is only by certainty that business can have the confidence to invest and expand our economy.
Following her appointment as Prime Minister, Liz Truss has now completed the ministerial and Parliamentary Private Secretary (PPS) appointments. I am delighted to have been appointed as a PPS in Treasury and will be working to support Chris Philp who is Chief Secretary to the Treasury (CST). I will tell you more about the CST’s role in coming weeks.
Following on from last week, as I said I went to RAF Coningsby with the Armed Forces Parliamentary Scheme (AFPS). This was a full day which started by explaining the role that Coningsby, in particular, but also the RAF in general, perform in defending the UK and its allies. We were informed about the role that the base plays in the frontline defence operations. It is here that our Typhoon fighters are on permanent alert should they be required, and we had the opportunity to meet and talk with staff on the base as well as experience the training simulator.
The other role at Coningsby is that of housing the Battle of Britain Memorial Flight. This includes some of the last flying machines that were critical in defending our country in World War II. It is always inspirational to hear some of the stories of heroism associated to the crews of these planes. When you see the planes up close it makes you realise how astonishingly brave these people were. Our next visit in a few weeks’ time is to RAF Fylingdales in North Yorkshire, which I'm sure will be equally interesting.
On Friday, I was not in Westminster for the Chancellor’s speech as I was in the constituency to enable me to attend a funeral. This gave me the opportunity to join the North East Space Leadership Group for a meeting in the morning, it’s very interesting to find out what plans they are developing and I look forward to helping them where I can.
The big plus side to being in the constituency is of course the opportunity to get out and meet constituents. Over the weekend, I was able to attend a number of events starting with the BBC Radio Tees Make a Difference Awards. The ceremony took place on Friday night and some fabulous people received awards. Everyone that was nominated was a real champion of the community. Amongst them was Jennifer Waddington from Newton Aycliffe, who I sat next to on the evening. Jennifer is a real star and was shortlisted for the carer award for the way she looks after her son after his accident.
I also went on Saturday to a Beerfest at the Surtees Arms in Ferryhill Station and on Sunday I went to the Sedgefield Area Churches Together service at Saint Michael’s in Bishop Middleham for their Taizé style service for Michaelmas. This is not a service I had experienced before so it was another learning experience.
A new week began in Aycliffe on Monday morning when I met with Carol Gaskarth from the Pioneering Care Partnership and Andy Boyd from the local Police. It was great to hear about all their fantastic work over the past year and discuss exciting plans for the future.
These opportunities let me meet people in less formal settings than our surgeries, so whether you have an event or want to come to a surgery just get in touch at [email protected] or call 01325 790580.
