THE Prime Minister was right to not allow us to be pulled into a war with no clear reason, strategic plan or outcomes.
When it matters most, we need leaders who are calm, strategic and not afraid to say no, even to a close ally when it’s the right thing to do.
As we’ve all seen over the past few weeks, global shocks and instability impact us locally. So many people struggling with the cost of living, once again hit with increasing bills, and there has never been a more obvious example of why we need sovereignty and control over our energy; decoupling from global energy markets controlled by oil and gas prices are the way forward.
We are not Norway; the Conservatives sold off the rights to our oil and gas decades ago, so to deliver security for our energy supply, we must invest in solar, wind, tidal and nuclear.
These plans take time to deliver but will remove the uncertainty and painful spikes in bills that people have suffered since the war in Ukraine and more recently the Middle East.
From fuel, energy, food and fertiliser, we’ve seen spikes in costs. The best ways to reduce these costs are an end to hostilities and the Strait of Hormuz to reopen. But in the meantime the government is capping bills, working with Competitions and Markets Authority to ensure businesses are not profiteering, providing funding support for those most vulnerable, extending the fuel duty freeze and planning to regulate the heating oil sector to introduce new protections, along with continued work to help reduce the cost of living for everyone.
One of the best parts of this job is getting out there across the constituency and meeting people from all walks of life – and that’s what I’ve been doing during the Easter break from Westminster.
Here are just a few glimpses of where my diary has taken me.
Reckless motorists speeding through the village of Grizebeck and along stretches of the A595 has been a concern for some time, so it was good to gather with members of Kirkby Ireleth Parish Council in the community hall to hear first-hand about the situation and to discuss possible remedies.
Rugby league has always been an important part of our sporting scene and Hindpool Tigers have come a long way from the days when they were called Corporation Combine – a team made up of town hall workers and other recruits which had mixed fortunes back in the 1970s and 1980s. The Tigers have big plans and chairman Graham Shaw really knows his stuff. I’m looking forward to collaborating with them in the future and providing all the help I can.
I also visited Craven Park to have a chat with Barrow Raiders’ chairman Steve Neale and his sister Adele who are tackling a number of improvement plans. The whole scene has changed massively since the post-war era when Willie Horne and his side peppered with internationals drew enormous crowds at home matches – but the club is marching on, and it’s great to know that the women’s team is playing in the top division. The Raiders have my support.
Barrow Town Hall’s massive Victorian dining room was the scene for what proved to be an interesting question-and-answer session with members of the Westmorland and Furness Youth Council. I’m grateful to participation and engagements officer Sarah Heywood for arranging the meeting with clued-up students testing me with questions that covered a range of subjects.
The Bram Longstaffe community hub on Barrow Island was another stop for an informative get-together with Warrior Down – an organisation that helps people with multiple complex needs, including getting former substance users back into employment. Experienced operator Ged Pickersgill was among the organisers, and it was a privilege to discover the brilliant work that’s going down.
And finally, a word in your shell-like.
Like many readers I knew there was an oyster farm not far from the lighthouse on south Walney, but it was only last week I paid a visit. It’s an incredible place where vast numbers of oysters in their various forms of development can be seen. Morecambe Bay Oysters hatchery and nursery employ four full-time staff but produces oysters that are exported all over the globe.
My thanks go to Walney-born aquaculture director Kelsey Thompson for showing me around this wonderful outpost.