The Queen’s Speech, at the official State Opening of Parliament, offers an opportunity to look ahead at the work the Government will set out to achieve over the coming year. I have to say it was sad not to have Her Majesty there in person on Tuesday and I wish her the very best in managing her future commitments. Her length of, and commitment to, service of our country is inspirational.
I have not agreed with all aspects of Government policy as we have come out of the pandemic and faced increasing public debt and prices which affect everyone. However, I thought the speech as delivered by Prince Charles focused on many of the right areas. This week I have had meetings with Ministers to discuss changes we could make within and outside of that framework to improve the economic outlook and keep inflation down to help people with the cost of living.
I was also able to discuss with Liz Truss plans to evolve the Northern Ireland Protocol. This is something that was very much envisaged within the Protocol itself, and it will work better for the people of the UK including Northern Ireland as well as giving the EU what they need in terms of protection for the integrity of their single market. It is not an option to leave things as they are and the EU is refusing to engage in the necessary process for change. This means we need to act ourselves and we are very much entitled to do so.
I am moving house within the constituency this week. It has been a huge joy to live in as beautiful a piece of history as Naish Priory and I am pleased to say I am moving close by and staying in East Coker. Having to live in two places and be in the London area so much during the week to do my Parliamentary duty can be challenging at times and it makes sense to have a smaller place than the Priory to manage here for the time being.
I know it's not easy for many people to find good places to live at the moment and I will certainly be looking closely at the Levelling Up and Regeneration Bill that will come forward and hopefully encourage more of the right type of housing in the right places, particularly on brownfield sites that can help our town and city centres thrive, as well as enough appropriate renewal of our villages and existing estates. I am very much encouraged that better design and stronger local input and environmental protection will be part of any reform and I will certainly look very carefully at what might is proposed and try to shape it positively.
I also had a good meeting this week on local environmental concerns in this regard with Tony Juniper of Natural England and Rebecca Pow the Environment minister.
Also important is a new Brexit Freedoms Bill that will overhaul EU laws copied over after we left the EU. It is very important we maximise the potential that comes with being outside the EU and optimising regulations and conditions for industries of the future as well as tailoring them for the UK will be of great benefit in many areas and encourage local resilience. Covid delayed things but now we must move forward with courage and imagination.
As always, if you would like to get in touch about any of the above, or if I can be of any help, please do email marcus.fysh.mp@parliament.uk or call 01935314321.