My letter submitted to this week’s Whitehaven News and Times & Star:
I want to say a heartfelt thank you to everyone across West Cumbria who helped organise and took part in this year’s Remembrance events and Poppy Appeal.
Remembrance is one of the most important moments in our national calendar. It’s a time to come together, remember those who made the ultimate sacrifice for our country, and thank those who have served and continue to serve.
I particularly want to pay tribute to our Royal British Legion branches across West Cumbria, and the many veterans and volunteers who work tirelessly, not just during the Poppy Appeal but throughout the year, to support our Armed Forces community.
It was a privilege to join volunteers collecting for the Poppy Appeal in Whitehaven and Workington this year, alongside veterans and young people from our Army, Sea and Air Cadets. Our cadet forces were out in strength at events across West Cumbria, and they deserve enormous credit.
Thank you, too, to our town and parish councils, community organisations and everyone else who helped organise Remembrance services and parades, and to everyone who donated, wore a poppy or turned out to pay their respects.
It was an honour to join the Remembrance events in Whitehaven and Workington and lay wreaths as your MP on behalf of the whole community, Parliament and the Government. And I thank councillors’ Pollen and Eldon for laying wreaths on my behalf in Egremont and Cleator Moor.
But our responsibility to those who have served cannot end when the wreaths have been laid.
There are few more important priorities for a government than making sure we look after those who put their lives on the line for the safety and security of our country.
That’s why I’m so proud, as your MP, to have helped secure new veterans’ support services in West Cumbria and across the county through the Government’s VALOUR programme.
From early next year, new services in Whitehaven, Workington and across Cumbria will make it easier for veterans and their families to get help with health, housing, welfare, education, employment and other issues.
It’s an important investment in making sure those who have served our country can get the support they deserve, close to home.
To everyone who contributed to Remembrance this year, thank you. We will remember them.
