As Member of Parliament for the Forest of Dean, I regularly attend meetings with headteachers and governing bodies across the constituency. In June, I attended a meeting with the headteacher and governors at Heart of the Forest Community Special School.
The first duty of any Government is to keep people safe, which is why I am pleased that Boris Johnson’s new Government has hit the ground running by announcing the recruitment of an extra 20,000 police officers. As the Home Secretary has said, it is time to reverse the balance of fear.
Parliament is now in recess until the first week of September. Regardless of what you may read in some national newspapers, this period is not a holiday for MPs. We still have plenty of work to do!
I have had the pleasure of attending the 25th anniversary celebrations for Sheppard House in Newent. Run by the Newent Association for the Disabled, Sheppard House was named after the late Trudie Sheppard MBE in recognition for her years of fundraising.
There are a record number of people in work, with over 32.75 million people now in work, up 354,000 in the past year and up by 3.70 million since 2010, and the unemployment rate is at its lowest since 1974.
I am very happy to report that the Government has re-opened the Rural Community Energy Fund (RCEF). The Fund is a £10 million programme to support rural communities in England to develop community-based renewable energy projects.
One very clear message that the electorate continues to send to politicians is the importance of having a sensible migration policy that controls the levels of immigration into our country. The topic featured prominently during yesterday evening’s leadership election debate between Jeremy Hunt a
I am very pleased that school children in Gloucestershire are set to benefit from £5m Trailblazer funding which will see specialist mental health support in schools and waiting times for other mental health services to improve.
