The first week of May was an extremely challenging time for North Cornwall. The situation in Bodmin and the seriousness of the crime that took place has come as a shock to all of us. I held a briefing call with the Police Commander for East Cornwall and continue to be updated. On behalf of everyone on my team in North Cornwall and Westminster, I offer my deepest sympathy to the friends and family of Michael Allen. There were also two fatal accidents on our roads this weekend - a crash on the A39 near Kilkhampton, and one on the A30. My team will be contacting the relevant agencies to seek clarification on both incidents. Towards the end of the week, I was informed of the terrible news about an employee of the Bodmin Asda store. At the time of writing, not many details have emerged, however, I would like to offer my sincere condolences to the family and the store colleagues.
In Westminster I was very busy in my role as Whip for the Home Office and Justice, as I was closely involved with the Immigration Bill, which I am pleased to report was voted through the House of Commons. It is unfair on those with a genuine case for asylum when our capacity to help is taken up by people coming here illegally from countries that are safe and it is unfair on the British people. That is why we are delivering a tough but fair approach, so that under our plan, if someone enters the UK illegally, they will be detained and removed to a safe country within weeks – with no ability to make spurious and late claims to frustrate removal. Opposition parties want unlimited and uncontrolled immigration – which is why they voted against our tougher immigration laws. This government is on the side of the British people, which is why stopping the boats is one of our five priorities.
Before the coronation weekend, I had several visits across the constituency. Firstly, I had the pleasure of visiting Duchy College in Stoke Climsland where I was shown around the new future farm site - the first part of the £10 million pound scheme including a new higher education hub and state-of-the-art dairy unit. The campus occupies a 660-acre estate with dairy, beef, sheep, arable and forage crops plus a range of dry and wet habitats typical of the area. Farming is a vital resource in North Cornwall and facilities at Duchy College and projects like the Future Farm are an asset to our farming community and keep it at the heart of the next evolution of environmental farming. I also visited Hamatethy, which is a member of the Nature-Friendly Farming Network to see the work they are doing to improve their soils and biodiversity whilst still providing high-quality beef. Hamatethy now produces organic pure-grass-fed beef cattle. The farm is implementing the Government's Farming for Nature Recovery programme across all of its 750 acres.
As always, if I can be of assistance to you with any local issues, please do not hesitate to get in touch via scott@scottmann.org.uk. Updates on my work both in the constituency and in Westminster can be found on my website www.scottmann.org.uk and on social media www.facebook.com/TheRightMannForNorthCornwall.
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