As I write this the Brexit situation is still very fluid so
rather than write a whole column about the latest series of developments, which
I am sure I will cover in future articles, I thought I would step away from it
for this week and look at some highlights from my work for you all last week.
Last week in Parliament I questioned the Space Minister in
Parliament, secured his ongoing support for Cornwall Airport Newquay to become
the UK’s first horizontal launch spaceport, as well as a visit from him in
April.
I also chaired a round table conference with the tourist
industry and local government in Parliament, was a keynote speaker at a
conference on the future of our vital community pharmacies, as well as
welcoming students from St Columb Major (ACE) Academy to Parliament.
In Mid-Cornwall on Friday I attended a St Austell Bay
Chamber of Commerce event to discuss future plans for the area. On Saturday I
was delighted to take part in a litter pick with local Councillors and
residents around Bishop Bronescombe School as part of Keep Britain Tidy’s Great
British Spring Clean.
Keep Britain Tidy’s Great British Spring Clean aims to inspire around half a million people
to join forces - in partnership with community organisations, businesses and
councils - to collect and safely dispose of litter from our streets, parks and
beaches, recycling as much as possible.
I regularly take part in litter picks and beach cleans
across our beautiful constituency and it’s great to see this movement to love
where we live picking up pace both in Cornwall and across the whole country.
In my capacity as Chair of the Ocean Conservation All Party
Parliamentary Group I have also worked for years with a number of organisations
to lobby the government to introduce a range of measures to cut down on single
use plastics, and am pleased to see these also being acted on.
Saturday’s litter pick saw volunteers joined by helpful
staff from Biffa to pick up a whole range of litter, including several traffic
cones, road signs and even a whole toilet. This came at the same time as I welcomed
confirmation by Cornwall Council that they will be allocating nearly £100,000
of government funding to enable community groups in Cornwall to have access to
more equipment for litter picks and beach cleans.
Of course as well as providing funding to tackle the
littering we already experience, it is also important to tackle the long term
causes of these issues, which I remain committed to doing so with the
Government’s long term environmental plan, which contains a whole raft of
measures to cut down on single use plastic and live more sustainably.
My team and I are here to serve the whole
constituency and work hard to make a real difference to the lives of everyone
needing support. The office is open to the public Monday – Friday 10.00am –
4.00pm (no appointment necessary). If there is an issue you would like my
assistance on then please, either visit the office or contact me on either
01726 829379 or office@stevedouble.org.uk. Additionally, I hold regular,
appointment only, advice surgeries across the constituency. Dates of these can
be found at: www.stevedouble.org.uk/events
