On Tuesday 21st January 2020, I led a parliamentary debate on High Speed One (HS1) rolling stock to discuss the need for new rolling stock on the High Speed line.
After spending last Saturday unusually in Westminster I had hoped to be able to write this column explaining what happens next in the Brexit saga. Sadly as I write nothing is yet clear, and I can only hope that we can see the route ahead by the time you are reading this.
Most of the time this column is useful to address the problems and complaints people have. There is never a shortage of subjects! Occasionally though I like to use it to remind us all of the quiet good work that goes on around our local community every day.
With crime and policing prominent in the news at the moment, I was pleased to take part in the Give a Day to Policing scheme this year. This is an invitation given to MPs to spend a day with police officers out at the sharp end, to see how the demands on the police are changing.
Every so often in my job something happens that is really inspiring. The Disability Confident conference organised by the Department for Work and Pensions at the Kent Invicta Chamber of Commerce fell into this welcome category.
The environment has been at the top of the agenda recently, with a large contingent from Ashford joining a mass lobby at Westminster on behalf of “The Time is Now” movement.
Today, (26th June 2019), Damian Green MP for Ashford, joined his constituents and thousands of activists from across the country to show his support for 'The Time is Now' mass lobby on nature and climate.
There has been a distinct shift in the wind in Ashford businesses’ attitude to Brexit in recent months. At the start of this year the real fear was of a No Deal exit, and all the potential difficulties that would cause. More recently the biggest problem has been the continuing uncertainty.
