WEEKLY UPDATE
Last week’s highlight was the visit of the South African President, Cyril Ramaphosa, to Westminster. On Tuesday afternoon he gave an address to both Houses of Parliament, having been introduced by the Speaker of the Commons he was then thanked by the Lords Speaker. His speech, and those of the Speakers, reflected on history and in particular the visit and role of Nelson Mandela as well as affirming the ongoing positive relations between our nations.
The event took place in the Royal Gallery, this is a part of the House of Lords I would not regularly visit. It is generally only seen by the public when they visit or when the Queen’s Speech (in future the King’s Speech) is televised, as this is on the route taken by the Monarch on the way to the Lords to deliver the address.
As I have mentioned before I am part of the NRG (Northern Research Group). This is a caucus that works to ensure that the perspective of the North is properly represented in any Government policies or initiatives. To this end we met with the Prime Minister last Tuesday morning to remind him of our key priorities. It’s the first time I have been in the Cabinet Room at No 10 and sat around the table where so many things have been discussed over the years. This will be followed up, this week, with meetings with the Chief Secretary to the Treasury, John Glenn, and the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, Michael Gove.
Last Wednesday, I joined a Westminster Hall debate on North East Fire Services to press the Minister to fully consider the support they need in the particular context they operate in. As mentioned previously, each week we have many interest groups visiting Westminster to promote support for the work they do or the help they need. One I met this week was Restitute. They are a CIC (Community Interest Company) that provides support for third party victims of serious crimes. An example would be when a family member has been abused, whilst there is a natural expectation of support for the direct victim, Restitute support the broader family who can easily be missed. If you know anyone who would benefit from their help, then you will find them at Restitute.org.
I joined my first meetings of the Transport Select Committee on last Tuesday and Wednesday, with a new Chair as well. The first was about our future work plans but the second was an informative private session focused on inclusive travel where we took representations as to how an enquiry should be constructed and what its particular focus should be.
Back in the Constituency I went to a couple of our local businesses; we held a series of surgeries in Ferryhill and we had a catch up with two of the three Neighbourhood Police Inspectors that cover my constituency. I was also able to join the rural PCSO for the Darlington part of my constituency on a shift. This is the best way to understand the challenges our Police face and is so much more informative than just meeting in an office.
As always, if there is anything we can do, please get in touch. Just give me a call on 01325 790580 or email at [email protected]
