June is always a busy month. With village fetes, music festivals, and picnics in the park – accompanied by the hot weather (if sometimes a little too much) - it’s a sure sign that summer has well and truly arrived.
This week, I wanted to give you a flavour of some of the things I’ve been doing while out and about in the constituency, away from what has also been – in very different ways – a frenetic Westminster.
Last Friday began with a visit to Petersfield for the opening of the new police station in the former Barclays Bank building. We also got a tour inside and a striking thing is how much bigger it is inside that you would guess from the outside.
As I said at the opening, visible and accessible police presence is key to helping communities feel supported and safe, and this also complements the ‘Local Bobbies’ approach. I’m continuing in discussions with the PCC about Alton too.
Next stop was Steep House Nursing Home as part of Care Home Open Week. I had the pleasure of meeting staff and residents, touring their beautiful gardens, and discussing some of the critical issues facing the care sector, including around staffing and visas.
From there, I headed to McDonald’s in Petersfield to meet the franchisee, Jose, and his team. McDonald’s are a significant youth employer locally and two thirds of their staff are aged 16 to 25.
Among other things we discussed the Employment Rights Bill currently going through Parliament. A number of businesses have expressed to me worries that the curbs in the new Bill could discourage hiring, especially for smaller businesses, and reduce opportunities for young people in particular.
My final visit of the day took me to the Crossover Youth Centre in Liss. This is an exceptional facility, run by a passionate team of youth workers and volunteers. I was shown around the centre, which is next to St Mary’s Church, including its fantastic music suite (some of the young performers were headed to the Selborne Music Festival that evening) and shelves of craft supplies for structured activities, including crochet!
As you can see, a day in the life of a constituency MP is nothing if not varied!
But more than that – being out and about with our local groups, businesses and voluntary organisations is absolutely vital to being able to represent East Hampshire in Parliament. What I hear directly informs what I put to the government and my contributions in Parliament – including most recently yesterday (as I write this) in a debate on the hospitality sector. More on that next week.
If you’d like to hear more about my work, please do sign up for my monthly newsletter, Reporting Back, at www.damianhinds.com.
And do join me at my public meeting in Liss next Friday afternoon (11th). Details are on the website.