Your views shape my work. On Saturday I was back out with my team in Shefford to speak to local people about their priorities. Lots of very positive conversations - thank you to everyone who took the time to speak to us.
It was great to meet residents in Arlesey at the village hall on Friday evening. A really productive discussion - with lots of issues for me to take away.
On Friday I was at Hitchin Girls' School as part of their Be Internet Citizens workshops today. It is vitally important that young people are given the tools that they need to thrive online and I was very happy to help them kick off the day!
For National Apprenticeship Week, I also joined my Treasury colleague Nigel Huddleston MP to meet apprentices from the Treasury and HMRC and hear about their experiences. Great to see so much brilliant young talent coming into the Treasury!
It is always a privilege to be able to open up Parliament to you. Yesterday evening I thoroughly enjoyed hosting another group of constituents for one of my regular tours of Parliament - giving an insight into the history of the building and life as a Member of Parliament.
Just before Christmas I visited the Sadie Centre near Hitchin. This week I was delighted to hear that they have received grant funding towards their work supporting older people. I will be working with them to secure additional funding to help them to do even more.
Rothamsted Research is a major employer in Harpenden. Like many of you, I was alarmed to read reports in the media of funding challenges at Rothamsted. I have reached out to them to offer to support them in any way I can as our local Member of Parliament.
Apprenticeships provide great opportunities for people to learn and earn and I'm determined to create as many as possible locally. On Wednesday, it was great to meet local apprentice Jordan at the Hospitality Apprenticeship Showcase.
The proposed development at Harpenden Station continues to cause concern for local residents. This week my team met with the developers to take a look at the plans in further detail - and emphasise the need for the replacement parking provision to be equivalent to current parking levels.
A good internet connection is more important than ever. That’s why I’m delighted that our efforts to deliver better broadband are paying off, with 1,000 more hard to reach homes set to benefit from gigabit broadband.
