WHEN I was elected here last month, I was given a mandate to get to work on three clear pledges: To create jobs and prosperity, to fix the Cornish housing crisis, and to work to revitalise our towns.

With summer recess now in full swing, I’m able to get into the weeds of planning how to realise these pledges. I spent probably far too many sleepless nights in the past months trying to work out where I’d get started.

But now, with a legislative timetable emerging for our government’s work for national renewal, whilst it’s clear there’s work I can be doing on all three, some of the policy tools I need from Westminster need to fall into place before I can really get stuck into jobs and housing. There’s advocacy to be done for Cornwall’s fair share of green prosperity and work to be done in Parliament to ensure we bake in our commitment of ensuring what we build reflects local views and needs. But, as those wheels start to turn, this buys me a few months to dive straight into the work on revitalising our towns.

That’s why I met again, last week, with St Austell BID, mayor Cllr Julian Young, and spoke with the landlords in the town centre.

Although there are areas of overlap, our towns face distinct challenges and require a tailored approach. An important part of the strategy will be meet Cornwall Council’s Adult Social Care Commissioning team to strike a better balance for St Austell & Newquay, and ensure that our providers are not letting our communities, or the vulnerable people they serve.

I’ll meet with Newquay BID later in the next weeks and begin to carve out a model of tourism that works for local people.

I also look forward to meeting Cllr Dick Cole on Friday to discuss the strategy for the Clay Country, and hosting my first surgeries there next week.

In the companies I worked with in my previous life as an investment professional working in developing countries, you’d often bring in what’s called a 100-day plan to identify those important first steps needed towards the strategy. Heck, I’d even be happy to sign up to some KPIs – measurable outcomes that we’re targeting, based on local people’s vision for our constituency. But these the kind of issues I’ll be working through in the coming weeks, to give you a plan we can all get behind.

I want to work with absolute openness wherever I possibly can. I will always be straight you with as to what I think we can and cannot achieve. And I will always explain how projects will be funded, who gets the benefit and who bears the costs. My work has to be driven by direct conversations with the business community and local residents which is why I maintain an open-door policy. Email me on noah.law (at) parliament.uk if you want to be part of the conversation.

Noah Law

Labour MP for St Austell & Newquay