Helen Morgan MP urges Government to ‘rural proof’ all new legislation in King’s Speech Debate

The MP for North Shropshire spoke in the debate on Planning, Greenbelt and Rural Affairs, as the Liberal Democrat Spokesperson for Local Government, and as a rural MP, to urge the new Government to consider rural priorities in all new legislation.

This comes after Helen Morgan noted the King’s Speech did not include any reference to rural areas.

After years of campaigning for better public transport in North Shropshire, Helen was glad to see plans for a Better Buses Bill, however Helen encouraged the Government to explain how this will be funded.

The North Shropshire MP welcomed the plans to tackle the crisis in mental health services but called on the Government to take action to deal with the crisis in GP and emergency care services after she revealed over 10,000 pensioners were forced to wait 24 hours or more at A&Es in Shropshire.

Helen also called on the Government to provide support for farmers after a botched transition to the Environment Land Management Scheme and poorly negotiated trade deals under the Conservatives, alongside turbulent weather, have left many struggling.

Helen Morgan MP for North Shropshire said:

“Rurality impacts the delivery of any service, whether that’s health, public transport, or mobile signal, so it is crucial the new Government reflects this in its legislation.

“The Conservative party completely neglected local health services in North Shropshire for years, from A&E waiting times to access to NHS dentists. We need to see investment in those services at the heart of the Government’s agenda.

“Farming is the backbone of our rural economy, and it needs to recover from years of Conservative mismanagement and unfair trade agreements which undercut British farming businesses.

“Farmers provide us with the food on our table, they protect our natural environment, and they are essential to our economy. This Government must prioritise them and keep farmers farming.

“I will keep a close eye on the new Government to ensure rural priorities and communities are not forgotten.”