My first visit of the week was to Cramlington Village Primary School as part of UK Parliament Week, the children were so enthusiastic and asked lots of questions about my role as an MP, in both Blyth Valley and in Westminster. We talked about how parliament works, the importance of democracy and the significance of freedom of speech.
I then headed to meet with Greg from FSNE Medical, who are contracted through the NHS Ambulance Services and provide medical support for private events such as the Remembrance service at Ridley Park over the weekend. Overall, in their fleet there are 42 vehicles with 130+ staff. I was saddened to hear that Greg has been assaulted whilst on an emergency call and because of this, his staff wear stab vests and more protective clothing. I wanted to highlight this issue and reiterate that our service men and women need to be treated with the respect they deserve. I then travelled back to the office for a call regarding SEND funding in schools before our office team meeting in the afternoon.
Tuesday was the official state opening of parliament, I was unable to be there due to a funeral of a close family friend. I watched the Kings speech when I got home which detailed Rishi Sunak’s plans for the near future. It was a shame not to be there in person but there is nothing more important than family.
The following day, I met with Inspector Jon Caisley, who leads the Cramlington Neighbourhood Policing Team, I wanted to discuss the ongoing issues with motorbikes in Blyth Valley. We have had many constituents contacting my office about the anti-social behaviour surrounding these motorbikes. I was pleased to hear that the police know this is a high community concern and is a priority for them. Many of these riders may not realise that there are substantial sentences for dangerous driving and they could end up with significant jail time. Jon reiterated that the best way to tackle ASB is through community engagement. Information on who is riding, hot spot areas and descriptions.
I then travelled through to the Showman’s Guild event at Ramside Hall as a parliamentary representative. The guild protects the interests of its members – travelling showmen who gain their livelihoods by attending funfairs. Sir David Amess MP was the chair of the APPG for the Showmans Guild and after his horrific murder, the group was disbanded and the APPG for fairgrounds and circuses was created. In my role I assist the industry in convening meetings with government departments who are introducing legislation. I support the showman in anyway possible and am delighted to help.
First thing on Thursday morning I went to the Buffalo Centre in Blyth due to an emergency with their utilities. I was pleased to resolve the issue with the electrical company and now they can move forward with the reopening of the newly renovated community centre. I then attended the Blyth Valley Disabled Forum directors meeting in Blyth, the BVDF are the biggest provider of community care in South East Northumberland. We discussed funding, staff turnover, training and future plans from the government for social care. I will be contacting the Health Minister regarding discharges into social care to see what more can be done to support the community care sector. I also wanted to personally thank them for their excellent care they provided to my late dad.
In the afternoon I had a catch up with Glen Sanderson, the leader of Northumberland County Council, we discussed updates on the gigafactory and ongoing constituent cases.
On Friday morning, I had the pleasure to visit Bede Academy to be a guest speaker at their year 8 forum as part of Parliament Week. I spoke about my role and how parliament works as well as the importance of democracy. The Q&A session was fantastic from the students, we had brilliant questions ranging from the developments in Blyth Town Centre to queries about aliens.
From here I drove up to Northumberland County Hall for the Remembrance service, I was honoured to lay a wreath at Northumberland County Hall on behalf of Blyth Valley. It was a heart-warming service followed by a two minute silence to remember the fallen.
I then had a constituency surgery back at the office before heading to Blyth police station to start my shift with the neighbourhood policing team. We travelled up to Northburn in Cramlington as there had been many reports of traffic issues due to maintenance work outside of Cramlington Eastlea Primary school. We could see straight away how the situation was occurring. This will now be on the ‘drive around’ list for officers in the area. We then visited the farms at the top of the Laverock which has become a hot spot for fly tipping. We then headed to Newcastle Road in Newsham, as we have had many constituents highlighting speeding cars/motorbikes coming off the roundabout. There has been an island placed but the local feeling is that it is not enough. We spoke to local residents and gained more information about recent incidents.
Our next stop was Blyth town centre, we walked around and discussed the issue of shoplifting and anti-social behaviour in the area. Officer Dan is on the neighbourhood policing team and talked about the great work they are doing to tackle these issues and how they are gathering intelligence. We then went on a drive around Seaton Valley and met with Councillor Eve Chicken to discuss concerns that have been raised to her from constituents. Dan and his excellent colleagues are keeping our streets safe but it is vital that all incidents are reported. I am determined to work with the police to make life better for local residents.
Throughout the time of Remembrance this year myself and volunteers laid thirteen wreaths across Blyth Valley. On Sunday I had the great honour of being part of the Ridley Park Remembrance parade, RBL Blyth did a fantastic job organising this event and our town showed its incredible community spirit once again.
As ever, if you would like to contact me, please email [email protected] or call 01670 338435.
