News Category - Justin Tomlinson

Swindon Placed In Tier-2 COVID Restrictions

Nov 26, 2020

The Government announced this morning that Swindon would be placed in Tier-2 once restrictions ease on 2 December. Under Tier-2: you must not socialise with anyone you do not live with or who is not in your support bubble in any indoor setting, whether at home or in a public place you must not socialise in a group of more than 6 people outside, including in a garden or a public space – this is called the ‘rule of 6’ businesses and venues can continue to operate, in a COVID-Secure manner, o...

Swindon MPs Say Spending Review Shows Conservative Government’s Commitment To Fight Coronavirus, Deliver On Its Promises And Invest In Our Recovery

Nov 26, 2020

Spending Review commits to billions of pounds to help tackle coronavirus next year, including £18 billion to fund our programmes on community testing, test and trace, PPE and vaccines. Increased funding to deliver stronger public services – including in schools, hospitals and our police force. £100 billion capital spending including infrastructure to drive UK’s recovery and support jobs – levelling up across the United Kingdom as we build back better from coronavirus. Swindon MPs Robert Bu...

Government Announces COVID-19 Winter Plan As Current Restictions Ease

Nov 25, 2020

The Prime Minister Boris Johnson has confirmed that current COVID restrictions will end on the 2nd December, and will be replaced by the COVID-19 Winter Plan. This means, on 2 December, across all of England: • The stay at home requirement will end, with travel being permitted again subject to guidance in each tier. • Shops, personal care, gyms and the wider leisure sector will reopen. • Collective worship, weddings and outdoor sports can resume. • People will no longer be limited to seeing onl...

Health and Wellbeing Project Manager at Great Western Hospital wins regional Parliamentary Award

Nov 24, 2020

MPs and NHS leaders in the South West have joined forces to honour health and care staff in the regional round of the NHS Parliamentary Awards. Sam Walklett, Health and Wellbeing Project Manager at Great Western Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, has won the regional south west Parliamentary Award in the Wellbeing at Work category. The local judging panel had over 70 nominations and a difficult decision in choosing their winners, so this award is a real testament to Sam’s hard work and positive att...

Justin Welcomes £3bn NHS Funding Boost

Nov 23, 2020

North Swindon MP, Justin Tomlinson has welcomed the Government’s commitment in the 2020 Spending Review to provide an additional £3bn funding to the NHS on top of the Government’s record health funding. The additional £3bn will be to tackle the backlog in surgical and health procedures within the NHS. Since beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic, many non-immediate or elective operations have been delayed by hospitals in order to reduce social contact and protect medically vulnerable people from Cov...

Government Takes The First Step In Approving COVID Vaccine

Nov 23, 2020

Over the past few weeks there have been very positive updates regarding potential COVID vaccines, with University of Oxford and British pharmaceutical company AstraZeneca the latest to announce a highly effective COVID vaccine – following announcements from Moderna, and Pfizer/BioNTech. In the UK, the first step of authorising a vaccine is for the Government to formally ask the UK medicines regulator, the MHRA, to assess its suitability. Today the Government announced that it has formally asked ...

Justin Welcomes Largest Investment In Our Defence In A Generation

Nov 20, 2020

North Swindon MP, Justin Tomlinson has welcomed the Government’s announcement yesterday that the Ministry of Defence’s annual budget, will be increased by a substantial £24.1 billion, the largest increase of its type in 30 years. Yesterday’s announcement, made by the Secretary of State for Defence, Ben Wallace MP makes clear Britain’s commitment to working with international partners on a range of global issues. This increasing in funds is the largest since the end of the Cold War, and will equi...

Swindon Advertiser Column - Oasis Leisure Centre Closure Is Unaccaptable

Nov 20, 2020

Yesterday we heard the very sad news that the Oasis Leisure Centre is set to close. Most people in Swindon have a cherished memory of the Oasis. It is an iconic, much loved, well used and integral part of Swindon’s heritage and leisure provision. Closure is unacceptable. In part the situation is complex. Yesterday, I did an impassioned BBC Wiltshire interview setting out my thoughts. Firstly, like all sectors of the economy – there is the impact of Covid. Thankfully through a combination of...

Justin Celebrates 25th Anniversary Of The Disability Discrimination Act

Nov 19, 2020

Minister of Disabled People and North Swindon MP Justin Tomlinson has celebrated the Disability Discrimination Act (DDA) as it marks it 25th Anniversary. The Act was pass in 1995, following a passionate campaign from disability rights activists. The introduction of the DDA made it illegal for employers and service providers to discriminate against someone because they are disabled. A Government enquiry described the DDA as big a step forward for the rights of disabled people as the 965 Race Rela...

Justin Welcomes Award For Swindon Based UK Space Agency

Nov 18, 2020

North Swindon MP Justin Tomlinson has welcomed news that the Swindon based UK Space Agency (UKSA) has received a prestigious award for its sustainable development initiative. The GEO (Group on Earth Observations) Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) Award, which celebrates productivity, innovation, novelty, and exemplary efforts in the use of Earth observations for sustainable development, was awarded to the UKSA in recognition of its International Partnership Programme (IPP). The programme is...