This week I have been back in Westminster but I am very much focused on making sure that the issues that matter to us here in Somerset are reflected at a national level. We all know that recovering from the pandemic is not going to be an easy time. However, we started the week with the positive news that NHS bosses do not feel that hospitals will be overwhelmed by the Omicron virus and the decisions to allow life to go on seem to have been entirely right. I have always thought that political leaders in all regions have been well-intentioned during the pandemic but some have had a tendency to push for restrictions which are so damaging to mental health, non-covid healthcare, businesses and education.
Because of COVID, and at this highly unusual time for the country and all of us, commitments towards net-zero carbon that turn out to be unaffordable and which would make almost no difference globally would be a mistake. Following the pandemic, increasing social care costs and massive rises in global fuel costs, we need to be making sure our cost of living is a priority. I have meetings with Rishi Sunak and also Energy Minister Greg Hands this week to discuss this and make the case that lower taxes and a positive environment for domestic investment in and production of gas and nuclear energy are sensible ways to support people and businesses with their input costs at this difficult time.
That is not so say that we should not be making progress on green issues but making energy more expensive and taxing those who produce it even harder is not the answer, especially as it just makes the material costs of transition such as grid and renewables investment that much higher. I certainly want to see targeted support for people where it can be provided as costs are high, but price fixing and piling on more debt and tax is not a sufficient answer in either the short or long term.
In case you haven’t seen it, as of Tuesday anyone who has a positive lateral flow test without having COVID symptoms need not take a PCR test. You still need to isolate but this should cut down the time and there are positive discussions about reducing the isolation period further. Getting the cost of testing down, whether for the Government or for individuals, especially those travelling abroad, is a priority.
Lots of people contacted me about the recent Environment Act so may be interested to know that a Government consultation opened this week asking interested people about how new housing and other developments can have a positive impact on nature and wildlife. If you are in a developer or in a related industry do get involved on the Government website.
Finally, on Tuesday I was at a debate about the rollout of superfast broadband in Devon and Somerset. It is something that I have been raising with the Government since I was elected in 2015. I know there are no easy answers in some more rural areas, and of course not everyone wants to pay for that level of connection, but for businesses who need it we must keep trying and the availability of full Gigabit in more places due the voucher schemes available was very much the message of the session.