As the weather changes and the rather chilly mornings and evenings tell us that summer is definitely over and autumn is here, last week saw schools returning and also MPs returning to Parliament.
I was pleased to speak to local residents on Moorlands Radio recently and one of the questions asked was did I go down to London by train. I did travel to London and back again to the Moorlands by train which, although different, was absolutely fine. As you know, you have to wear a mask and there are social distancing measures in place so that you can only sit next to someone if you are in the same bubble.
Parliament also has many social distancing measures in place and whereas before the pandemic, you would usually see me in the Chamber during debates, daily questions to Ministers and of course Prime Minister’s Questions on a Wednesday, it is only possible to be in there now if you have been selected in a ballot to speak, to ensure that social distancing takes place.
This is frustrating as it means we cannot “bob” and ask spontaneous questions but there are of course, other ways to make Ministers aware of your concerns such as written questions.
With children back at school, I would like to thank thank all our teachers and school staff across the Moorlands for the work they have been doing to prepare for this. I have been in touch with schools across the Moorlands over the last few months. I visited All Saints’ School in Leek during recess to see the measures they had put in place and on Friday was pleased to return to Horton Lodge to attend an event to celebrate the building improvements that have been made to the school.
