Theresa May is a strong, experienced and natural leader and I am sure will do an excellent job as Prime Minister and leader of the Conservative Party. I have a lot of respect for Mrs May and I am confident she will fulfil our manifesto pledges and deliver on the people's instruction to leave the European Union. I have offered my assistance in negotiations to leave so that we can get a good deal focused on the opportunities, giving businesses and individuals the positive certainty needed as soon as possible. It is now time for the Conservative family and friends to come together and rededicate ourselves to working hard for the British people.
I am also delighted that we have got strong, stable leadership in place so quickly without a period of uncertainty which the financial markets are wary of. It is what the country needs and it is good to see our politicians react so positively to that. It is time to put the labels of ‘leavers and remainers’ aside and join together in securing the best possible future for our great nation.
This week the Ministry of Defence has announced a Strategic Partnering Agreement with Leonardo Helicopters UK, or Westlands as we know it locally. The agreement recognises the mutual relationship between the MOD and Leonardo with a commitment to working together and recognition of roles in enhancing national prosperity through exports. Through discussions with their management and union reps I know very well that what the company needed was some long term commitment and so this, along with the Apache partnership discussions with Boeing, is good news. I am also excited about the Government support for research and development work in Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVS) which are sure to be key for any aerospace manufacturer in the future.
With the disappointing Euros now finished, it’s a good time to get behind our local football and what better way than supporting the Glovers Trust which has been launched to give Yeovil fans more of a voice and strengthen community links. I signed up on the launch night and you can too at http://www.glovers-trust.co.uk/. Another brilliant get together was this year’s second CokerFest on Saturday night. My congratulations and thanks to all the organisers of what I hope is now a fixture in the Coker calendar.
My thanks also to the Old Ilminsterians for inviting me to their Annual Founders Day Dinner on Saturday. I was on a table with Old Cerdics and Old Crewkernians and enjoyed a positive discussion about EU negotiations. I have been getting a huge amount of correspondence about the process and I intend to be fully involved so do please keep writing and let me know your views and priorities. As always, if I can help with a personal concern or local issue, do get in touch at [email protected] .