It is great to be back in Parliament after the half-term recess. Every week here is so busy it is very important to have time down in the constituency to meet constituents and recharge your batteries. But now everyone is back and there is lots to be done!
On Monday I attended a very moving event launching the Action on Cerebral Palsy Report. I was particularly affected by the speech of Dr Helen Hunt, who spoke powerfully about the challenges of raising a child with cerebral palsy. Among other things, the group wants to help children with cerebral palsy develop their potential through specialist educational support. Events like this in Parliament are important for raising awareness and I know it had an impact on all the MPs there.
It has also been an environment-heavy week, with events with the Woodland Trust and National Trust, as well as the second reading of the Environment Bill in the Commons. Sadly, I could not speak on the Bill, although I am following it closely. It provides a great opportunity for the UK to become a world leader in environmental conservation and tackling climate change and I am pleased to support it.
At the Woodland Trust I learned about their ambitious tree-planting plans and at the National Trust we heard about their new ‘Noticing Nature’ scheme. This aims to boost a grassroots interest in local conservation by helping people become aware of the fascinating plants and wildlife all around us. I am very glad that the environment and climate change are getting such attention at the moment, both from the public and the Government. If we all work together, I am confident we can make great strides in tackling climate change and protecting our natural surroundings for future generations.
I also spoke in a debate on social care, where I had the opportunity to talk about the work being done by Lapis Care, a local care provider that I was pleased to meet with a few weeks ago. They are putting on a Community Care Show on March 20th, which aims to connect various care agencies and people who might one day need care. Hopefully this will mean that, should a crisis strike, plans are in place meaning people can get the care they need from day one. You can read my full speech on Hansard here.
Finally, I was honoured to be appointed a Parliamentary Private Secretary (PPS) to the Secretary of State for International Development (DfID) last week. The role of a PPS is to support a ministerial team in a department and act as a bridge between Whitehall and Parliament. It is an interesting job and I am very happy to be doing it for DfID, as this is a subject area I am passionate about. I look forward to learning more in the job and doing what I can to assist the Department.
It looks like it might be a rather cold and wet weekend, but I hope you enjoy it all the same!