“Parliament returned this week – but as well as spending much more time in Suffolk over the summer recess – I was also privileged to witness our amazing Paralympians win over 100 medals in Toyko. As Secretary of State for disabled people, I proudly waved the Union flag and cheered them on from the stands. Supporting our Paralympians in Japan provided an opportunity for me to hear first-hand of their journeys and also to hear what it's like living in the UK for people with a disability, listening to their thoughts on our new Disability Strategy. Sport builds life skills and therefore improving accessibility in sport will help enable the UK to become a nation of equal opportunity on and off the field. That is just one aspect of improving opportunities though and the Government has made over 100 commitments to reform the daily lives of disabled people through our National Disability Strategy, so everyone has the same opportunities to fulfil their potential. While there are commitments based around sport it is also through enhancing access to jobs, transport, education, justice and public services for the long-term, that will enable disabled people to have the same chance of success as anyone else in every path they choose.
During the summer it was confirmed that over 40,000 UK students will be able to study and work abroad thanks to the government’s new £110m Turing Scheme. As part of the new global scheme, Canada, Japan and the United States are amongst over 150 international destinations where UK students will be funded to take up work and study placements – alongside popular European countries like Germany and France. A great opportunity for Suffolk students.
I’m also delighted to report that over 90,000 households in rural Suffolk will benefit from top-of-the-range broadband connections as part of the government’s £5bn Project Gigabit investment. The work to connect these hard-to-reach properties is due to commence in February 2022 providing faster, more reliable internet connections to more residents in Suffolk Coastal.
Finally, do lookout for a new type of unleaded petrol now available from the pumps. E10 has more ethanol than current unleaded fuel and switching over could cut carbon emissions by 750,000 tonnes a year. Not all cars are compatible but those built after 2011 should be fine. The E5 petrol will still work in all petrol cars but it’s worth checking if your car can run on om the new E10 at - www.gov.uk/check-vehicle-e10-petrol.”