Check on the elderly and vulnerable this winter

My regular column for West Sussex newspapers:  This week much of West Sussex, already bracing for cold weather, woke up blanketed in a layer of snow. Whilst some schools shut and businesses encouraged many to work from home, I know that a good number of rural residents had no choice to battle icy B-roads to get where they needed to be. A huge thank you to all those

It appears this cold weather is here to so I would urge all road users to heed the call of Sussex Police and drive to the road conditions.

Similarly, it has never been so important to think of those who are elderly and vulnerable. Do your best to check in on those who may not be able to look after themselves and turn on heating to ensure temperatures indoors remain at a safe level. Our community has always come together in tough times and I am sure we will see that spirit revived this Christmas.

I was sad to lose a friend with the passing last week of local Graffham resident, The Rt Hon Baron Young of Graffham CH DL. Lord Young had an illustrious career spanning both business and politics. He served in Mrs Thatcher’s cabinet – notably as Secretary of State for Trade and Industry and he was later an adviser on enterprise to David Cameron.

Lord Young was passionate about business and as an adviser he was one of the architects of the enterprise allowance which helped unemployed people to set up their own business. It went on to fund hundreds of thousands of people and spawned many successful large companies. 

After I entered Parliament, Lord Young, even though then in his late eighties, kindly helped me with a number of policy papers that we worked on together. My thoughts are with his wife, Lita, his daughters and their families.

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