The Ravenshead BBQ was a huge success and it was great to see so many people come along, particularly all the new faces. On Sunday I got to spend a bit of time with the family and went along to see my son play rugby.
On Monday morning I was grilled by Mrs Greg's year 4 class at Woodborough Woods school who pulled no punches when it came to the questions! I can honestly say they were tougher than any debate.
Back in London I had my bloodpressure taken by the stroke association who were raising awareness about the symptoms and prevention of strokes. I'm pleased to say that despite year 4's best efforts, my bloodpressure was completely normal.
I also attended a meeting on fairer funding for the Police which was of great interest. I am extremely concerned that funding across the country is inconsistent and unfair with the East Midlands taking the hardest hit. For example, in Northumberland the total Government Provision is £171 per capita versus £141 in Nottinghamshire. I feel that Nottinghamshire Police take a great deal of criticism, much of it unfairly given that their resources are considerably less than neighbouring constabularies. I raised this point in the house at a debate which was later covered by the Evening Post. www.thisisnottingham.co.uk/news/MP-calls-changes-funding-police/article-2417857/article.html .
At a meeting on the state of food and agriculture, I discussed with others the challenges we currently face in terms of food provision, how we can sustainably feed the world over the coming generations and the role that livestock and access to water are going to play.
Yesterday I had a meeting with Vince Cable to discuss how to save the jobs currently under threat at the Rolls Royce plant in Hucknall. The factory is feeling the economic pressure at the moment, as many manufacturers are, and is facing the possibility of having to buy in parts from overseas rather than producing them in the UK. I feel passionately that we must do all we can to preserve skilled jobs in this country and after a very positive meeting, I'm pleased to say that Vince fully backs me in this aspiration.
The National Farmers' Union held an event with Morrison's to promote the work being done by farmers in the country. Making sure that small suppliers get a fair deal from supermarkets is so important - if we don't protect our local producers, we will find ourselves completely dependent on foreign imports and I think it would be a shame to lose our national farming heritage.
Finally, last night I had a meeting on renewable waste management where the impact of incinerators on local communities, the prospect of further developing anaerobic digestion and how other boroughs and counties are dealing with their waste managment in a renewable manner.
Back to the constituency tonight and if you need to get in touch, please don't hesitate. You can reach me on mark.spencer.mp@parliament.uk or at my constituency office on 0115 968 1186.
Mark
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