Swindon Advertiser Weekly Article - 3rd February

On Wednesday, Parliament voted overwhelmingly to approve the Article 50 Bill showing our commitment to honouring the will of the British public.

We were able to witness Parliament at its best as there were two days of debate where the tone of debate was respectful and the overriding consensus was that we must now seek to make the best of the situation we are now in. Following the debate, Parliament voted 498 to 114 in favour of the European Union (Notification of Withdrawal) Bill at second reading. The Bill responds directly to the Supreme Court Judgment of 24 January and seeks to honour the commitment the Government gave to respect the outcome of the referendum held on 23 June last year.  We have been clear that there must be no attempts to remain inside the European Union, no attempts to re-join it through the back door, and no second referendum. Parliament voted to give the people the chance to determine our future in a referendum, and I am glad that this government is determined to honour the decision of the British public.

Elsewhere I have been sitting on the Local Government Finance Bill in Parliament this week which is seeking to allow local councils to retain 100% of the revenue from business rates. This is a huge boost for Swindon as one of the fastest growing towns as it allows local residents to directly share in the benefit of Swindon’s economic growth. The Bill Committee is a very long process as we scrutinise the bill line-by-line. Unfortunately Labour have consistently tried to block the bill as they believe that money should be taken away from growing towns to be redistributed elsewhere. This is unfair as it is the people of Swindon who have contributed to this growth in the first place so they should be the ones to experience the extra money for local services and new infrastructure. Thankfully, I spent 10 years as a councillor in Swindon before becoming the MP so am able to draw on this experience to push for more incentives for growth for towns like ours.

Finally tomorrow is World Cancer Day and I was glad to join a number of charities this week to raise awareness. The aim is to save millions of preventable deaths each year by raising awareness and education about the disease. Currently 8.2 million people die from cancer worldwide every year, out of which, 4 million people die prematurely. We all know somebody close to us who has fought this terrible disease. Some make it through but too many do not make it at all. By spreading the word on World Cancer Day and sharing stories, we can hopefully encourage more people to be aware and more likely to spot any symptoms of cancer before it is too late. The Government also has a role to play as 1 in 3 cancers are preventable through healthy lifestyle choices. That is why it is pursuing initiatives such as the Childhood Obesity Strategy. Currently Cancer Research has found that more than 1 in 20 cancers in the UK are linked to being overweight or obese. Therefore by ensuring our children grow up fit and healthy, we will be helping them to stay clear from devastating diseases such as cancer.