People’s frustration that I failed to take part in the Climate Change Debate in Parliament last Thursday is understandable. It is a debate I wanted to engage in because it is imperative that the Government support Cornwall’s carbon-free aspiration. It’s also vital that the Government is honest and clear about how it plans to meet net zero emissions targets and, more importantly, brings these commitments forward. We describe ourselves as a global leader, and as such we have a significant role in reducing harmful emissions. I was unable to attend the debate as I had a long-standing commitment at the Brain Tumour Research Centre in Plymouth within my role as the Chair of the All Party Group on Brain Tumours. Last year we secured an extra £13m each year of research money to find a cure for brain tumours and I appreciated the opportunity to see how this money is being spent and meet the bright minds that are committed to finding the breakthrough that so many families hope for.
Raising awareness of brain tumours and funding is still essential and March is brain tumour awareness month. On March 29th I’ll be engaged, once again, in the national ‘Wear a Hat Day’ campaign and shops in our towns will be collecting donations and raising awareness. If you or your business want to join in please let me know.
I’ve committed to improving the lives of people who have disabilities and seeking to identify 10 tangible changes that can be made to achieve this in 2019. I met with DisAbility Cornwall to learn about the work they are doing to develop an easy to follow self-help tool to assist all businesses, shops, services and schools to improve their accessibility in an affordable way. For shops and businesses that rely on customers for their livelihood it provides a welcome way to increase their customer base whilst taking the right and proper action in support of people with physical or sensory impairments.
Once a year I bring together local residents, elected representatives and the appropriate agencies to keep up the pressure to carry out safety measures on the stretch of A30 from Crowlas to St Erth. This meeting took place on Friday and it’s welcome news that revised speed limits and improved signs and road markings will be introduced this year. We have set up a small team of community representatives to progress the need for significant safety measures to be made on the Crowlas junction and we have planned a further meeting to progress the work for a new road altogether from Camborne to Penzance (which features in the Transport Plan for the Southwest). In itself a new road will resolve a number of challenges faced by West Penwith. However, I want our discussions to consider what other benefits could and should be achieved. £27m worth of footpaths, cycle and bridal paths as well as habitat and heritage projects is to be provided alongside the new A30 alongside Truro and I expect to see the same here.