This month, I announced that in October I’ll be skydiving from 15,000 feet to raise money for Shooting Star Children’s Hospices.
 
As some residents will be aware, this inspirational charity cares, free of charge, for babies, children and young people who may have been born with life-limiting progressive conditions, have cancer, or have undiagnosed conditions with complex symptoms. Each year, they support 700 families throughout Surrey (including in Elmbridge) and London.
 
Shooting Star Children’s Hospices have had a challenging time during the pandemic, so I want to do something to help out. I’m aiming to raise at least £20,000 through the skydive. If you’re able, you can donate through my Just Giving page here.

In other local news:

• I had a valuable meeting with local Residents’ Associations across Elmbridge – from Long Ditton to Cobham. We discussed how to go about local planning in Elmbridge, and there was a striking amount of consensus, particularly on the need to protect the Green Belt. Elmbridge Borough Council needs to stop dithering and get a Local Plan in place as soon as possible, to protect the Green Belt and build the right homes, in the right places, to the right quality.
   
• I caught up with Surrey’s new Conservative Police and Crime Commissioner, Lisa Townsend, to feed local concerns into her developing Police and Crime Plan for the county. We discussed a range of important issues for Elmbridge, including anti-social behaviour, burglaries, knife crime and unauthorised encampments.

• It was an honour to attend the grand opening of Cobham Free School’s main site at Munro House. This ceremony marked the end of a 10-year journey to bring an all-through school to Cobham. It’s a fantastic boost for children and parents in the area, particularly because the new site means the school will eventually reach a capacity of 1,064 children – significantly easing the pressure on school places across Elmbridge.

Finally, there were some welcome indications this month of things getting back to normal locally, as Coronavirus restrictions eased. It was encouraging to see the businesses on Claygate Parade bouncing back, while the team at Molesey Boat Club organised a successful return for Molesey Regatta.

At the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) this month, it was great to welcome Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta to London, where we announced £132m of new UK investment in Kenya. I met President Kenyatta at the start of his three-day visit to the UK, during which he co-hosted the Global Education Summit with the Prime Minister.
 
Elsewhere this month:

• I visited Paris for talks with my French opposite number Jean-Yves Le Drian. We discussed how the UK and France will strengthen our work together – including on climate, girls’ education in the poorest countries, and tackling small boat crossings in the channel. I also signed a new security treaty with France, which will protect passengers on Channel ferries.
   
• I announced new UK sanctions against five individuals involved in serious corruption around the world, from Venezuela to Iraq. These individuals have deprived developing countries of vital resources, and our sanctions mean that they will no longer be able to channel their money through the UK or enter the country.
   
• I took questions from MPs about all aspects of the FCDO’s work, including the situation in Hong Kong and the global distribution of Covid vaccines.

I also kept up my regular engagement with other foreign and development ministers around the world – meeting or speaking to my Icelandic, Czech and Spanish counterparts.

On 19 July, we moved to “Step 4” of the Roadmap out of Coronavirus restrictions. While the majority of legal restrictions have now been removed, it is important to remember that Coronavirus has not gone away. So, as we move from legally-binding regulations towards individual common sense, people still need to protect themselves. For example, this includes wearing face coverings in crowded and enclosed spaces.
 
A few weeks before restrictions were removed the government published the final data for some of the emergency Covid loan schemes introduced last year. The Bounce Back and Coronavirus Business Interruption Loans provided almost £80bn of support to businesses across the UK. In Elmbridge, businesses received over £220m.
 
Finally on Covid, earlier this month we reached the important milestone, ahead of target, of every adult in the UK being offered a first dose of a vaccine. 2 out of 3 adults were also double vaccinated ahead of schedule. As you can see above, in Elmbridge, we’re close to having 100,000 residents vaccinated.
 
In other good news this month:

• New economic growth projections from the IMF forecast 7% growth for the UK in 2021 – the joint highest rate in the G7.
   
• The Prime Minister and Home Secretary visited the Surrey Police headquarters to launch the government’s Beating Crime Plan. The measures announced include expanding the use of electronic monitoring, so burglars and thieves have their whereabouts monitored upon release from prison. Everybody who’s been a victim of crime will also have a named police officer to get in touch with.
   
• After the England team’s brilliant performance in the Euros, Elmbridge residents have an extra reason to feel proud – as defender Luke Shaw grew up in Molesey, and went to Three Rivers Academy in Hersham.