Earlier today, local MP Kevin Foster spoke during a Westminster Hall debate on the South-West Growth Charter.
The new charter is a collaboration between businesses, public sector partners and Local Enterprise Partnerships that will be focusing on achieving growth in the South West.
Kevin praised the new charter, making clear that the partnerships and combined voices of all South-West MPs will help to provide a strong message that will drive growth. Indeed, in the coming months the South-West as a whole will see investment in broadband, railways and training in STEM subjects, in addition to Torbay Council creating a £50m growth fund that enormously help drive growth in the Bay.
However Kevin also made it clear that there is still much more that needs to be done. Yesterday’s storm showed just how brittle our railway network is with lines being flooded, trains being cancelled, and seemingly simple journeys taking hours. Indeed, the Peninsula Rail Task Force presented a report on improving rail resilience in the South-West today in Westminster, however Kevin had to be driven to London to hear it due to the rail network being unusable!
Kevin’s speech can be viewed online by clicking here.