Quantcast
Channel: Leicester Mercury Latest Stories Feed
Viewing all articles
Browse latest Browse all 9894

MP Nicky Morgan: lluminating time for shadow

0
0

It has been another intense fortnight in Westminster, as well as dealing with lots of correspondence from my constituents. In Westminster, we have had debates and statements about the proposed badger cull, the EU budget, the proposed levy for drivers of HGV vehicles, the sectioning of mental health patients, the police and many other issues.

In any week, I will receive about 150 e-mails from constituents, all of which I read.

Current hot topics include the badger cull, the desire for a crackdown on tax avoidance and energy bills and prices.

I have also been busy pursuing my focus on mental health by holding meetings with Young Minds, which recently launched a report about young people self-harming, the Mental Health Network and the Priory Group.

I attended a recent meeting of the All Party Parliamentary Group on Mental Health, which was listening to evidence on crisis care.

It was also a pleasure to attend the Prime Minister's Eid reception at Number 10 Downing Street. It was a packed event with everyone in good cheer.

We had the opportunity to pose with the Rugby League World Cup in advance of the 2013 tournament.

I am hoping the England team will be based in Loughborough.

But now, for something different – the rest of this week's column is being handed over to a Loughborough University research associate, Dr Elaine Yolande Gosling.

Elaine has been work-shadowing me for part of this week, as she explains here:

I was delighted to be selected to participate in the Royal Society pairing scheme and to be paired with Nicky Morgan, MP for Loughborough.

The scheme has provided me and other scientists with the opportunity to see how my research can best help inform policy.

For the MPs and civil servants who participate, it is intended that they gain a greater awareness about the science in our research fields.

In the first half of the week, we were introduced to the different scientific committees in Parliament and Government and how these are used by MPs to help inform the policy decision-making process.

In groups, we were asked to assess what scientific information politicians would need when responding to natural disasters.

I met Sir John Beddington, who spoke of the importance of science and engineering advice in Government and how science underpins the UKs response to global issues.

For the second half of the week, I shadowed my MP, Nicky Morgan.

Just before Prime Minister's Questions (PMQs) was a very interesting international development session, with MPs debating issues ranging from fish stocks in Gaza to pit latrines and the need for safe clean water.

During PMQs, I saw first-hand our MPs asking the questions that concern the electorates directly of the PM and his responses to these – along with a few cheers and roars.

The first item on Nicky's agenda after PMQs was an interview by My Time, a mental health awareness group.

Following this, she was busy responding to constituent inquiries.

During a late lunch, we discussed the importance of my research at Loughborough University.

Later, I attended a presentation about the National Apprenticeship Scheme.

To round the day off, I was invited to attend Eid celebrations at No 10, where I got to meet other constituents from across the UK and other MPs.

Nicky will be visiting Loughborough Design School, where I work. I will present my research and invite her to have a go with design outputs from our projects, as well as introducing her to the other great research within the school.

I hope I can take all of these experiences forward into my career.

MP Nicky Morgan: lluminating time for shadow


Viewing all articles
Browse latest Browse all 9894

Latest Images

Trending Articles





Latest Images