Dear Constituent,

It was with great sadness that I heard the news of Bob Sheldon’s passing. I first met him when he came to Tameside College in 1991 to do a Q&A with the students on my course and he left a lasting impression on me. He was a remarkable public servant over a long and distinguished career as both an MP and then a Peer, including stints as a Treasury Minister and Chair of the Public Accounts Committee for 14 years.

His contribution to Tameside was recognised when he became a freeman of the borough in December 1989 and he is still fondly remembered by his former constituents. Lord Sheldon Way and the Sheldon Arms – both in my constituency – serve as a reminder of this and his commitment to the communities of Tameside. My thoughts are with Bob’s friends and family.

 

Andrew Gwynne, MP for Denton and Reddish, has welcomed a report by Girlguiding, but expressed concerns over some of its findings.

The report presents the findings of the 11th Girls’ Attitudes Survey, Girlguiding’s annual survey into the lives of girls and young women in the UK.

Over 2,000 girls aged 7-21 from across the UK were asked for their views on a range of topics, including life online, the environment and bullying.

Top findings this year included:

• 50% of girls aged 11-16 are put off being leaders because women leaders are criticised more than male leaders
• 47% of girls aged 7-10 don’t have access to a playground with swings and a slide
• 79% of girls and young women aged 7-21 have experienced bullying or unacceptable behaviours
• 88% of girls and young women aged 7-21 feel it’s urgent that we all do more to protect the environment

Andrew Gwynne said:

“I’d like to thank Girlguiding for another fascinating Girls’ Attitudes Survey – these are a really useful insight into the issues that girls and young women face.

 

“I was very concerned by some of the findings. It is particularly shocking that half of girls are put off leadership roles because of the criticism that women face.

 

“This is why the way that women MPs – and other women in leadership roles – are talked about is so important.”

 

Last Friday was a truly historic day. After 47 years of membership and 3 years of bitter argument, we have now finally left the European Union. Nationally, 52 percent voted for Brexit and here in Tameside it was even higher. It has been a frustrating time for many people, regardless of how they voted and I’m sure many of you will be relieved that we have now left. Whilst much is still to be decided during the next year of transition period, hopefully much of the anger and division which we’ve all seen recently will come to an end and we can start to bring our communities back together.

 

As I have written here many times previously, I have always respected the outcome of the referendum back in 2016, but like many in my position I have had concerns about the kind of deal that we leave with. The deal that we currently have would not have been my preferred option – I would have liked to have seen a deal which protected our jobs, our rights at work and our environment. However, the deal that we have is the deal that we have and I believe that our country can find a new place in the world and thrive.

 

As a result of December’s general election it will, of course, be the Tories who negotiate the next stage of Brexit, including our future relationship with Europe. Boris Johnson has said a lot of different things about Europe over the years (famously, he wrote articles both for and against Brexit during the campaign) and sometimes it can be hard to tell what he wants our relationship to be with Europe post-Brexit. He has talked about his “desire to cooperate with our friends and partners [in the EU] in everything” and I hope that he follows through on this, as Brexit does not mean the end of our partnership with other European countries.

 

Beyond Europe, I am keen to see how we can further develop our relations with other nations. Trade deals will be very important in doing this, but I think that it’s just as important that our NHS is kept firmly off the table and that we don’t end up with chlorinated chicken, hormone beef or any other dodgy foodstuffs as a result. I’ll be doing everything I can to make sure that post-Brexit deals don’t undermine the things that we value most.

 

So, however you voted in 2016, let’s all come back together so that Britain can prosper in our new post-Brexit world.