It’s been another busy week in Parliament representing your interests.
With the Brexit Bill having passed through the House of Commons last Thursday I am pleased to report it is now with the House of Lords where it has already passed its Second Reading, ready for us to start our new chapter as we leave the EU on 31st January. And having met with the Secretary of State for International Trade, I am certain that is a bright future ahead.
But as I said last week, Brexit is not the only issue I want to tackle and I have already kicked off my work on the other areas important to us. One of my big priorities is securing extra investment for our town so that we are geared up to take advantage of the new and exciting environment we find ourselves in. That means creating a business-friendly environment in Burnley and Padiham where companies want to locate and expand, and ensuring our town centre is a vibrant place to be.
That’s why it was so important and positive to welcome the Northern Powerhouse Minister, Jake Berry MP, to Burnley last Friday to discuss what we can do together to help local businesses. We both met with Burnley Football Club at Turf Moor, talking about the positive impact the club makes both economically and culturally. And we were also able to speak to BFC in the Community, hearing about the contribution they make and plans for the future..
It’s not possible for change to come overnight but as the economy grows so can investment into public services and I have been speaking personally with a range of Government Ministers about how we can improve our schools, hospitals and police. It’s something which I am passionate about and an area where we will see real improvements.
Finally, to keep you all updated, I spent the Christmas period finding a suitable location for an office in the town and I’m looking forward to sharing more details of where this will be in the weeks ahead. In the meantime, I have been very clear that I want to remain as accessible to all residents as I can be which is why I’ve been holding surgeries each weekend throughout January. These have been very well attended and I’ve enjoyed speaking to many of you already about a whole range of topics.
