Crawley Borough Council has commenced the next phase of its wider programme to revitalise unsupervised playgrounds across Crawley with the refurbishment of Northgate play and youth areas at Northgate playing fields. This phase of the Unsupervised Play Investment Programme, which is being fully funded by developers through Section 106 and Community Infrastructure Levy payments, will see six play areas refurbished: Northgate, Northgate youth area, Loppet’s Road in Tilgate, Ifield Green, and Woodcroft Road and Hanbury Close in Ifield.

Come the May elections, Keir Starmer will be gone. I suspect even in Number 10 there are few people who doubt this now. While the Mandelson Scandal will prove to be the final nail in his political coffin, I’m afraid that it is only a symptom of the real issue: poor political judgement. The public has seen this clearly in the form of regular u-turns and the constant ditching of policies first leaked to the press, while incoherent party management has alienated the Prime Minister’s natural supporters.

Listening to politicians, you would think the economy was everything. As the Chair of the Parliamentary Group for Wellbeing Economics, I’m well-aware the evidence proves relationships, meaningful work, and physical activity improve quality of life far more than material wealth. Yet, while this is useful to know to prioritise public expenditure and taking decisions for our own lives, the reality is you can’t do much without money.

When you consider what makes up the UK’s national identity, what comes to mind? The Royal Family? Fish and chips? Our National Health Service. Expert queuing? Great answers, but for me nothing quite embodies our national character as much as Remembrance Sunday. The UK is far from alone in having a day dedicated to remembrance, but the day unites people across every part of our nation in taking the time to reflect upon the sacrifices made so those of us here today can live free from tyranny.

Yesterday the Government announced changes which will transform the housing conditions of leaseholders, including capping ground rents and moving toward commonhold. However, with Forge Wood and a number of other roads in Crawley currently suffering from 'fleecehold' (having to pay large sums for services residents receive from the council elsewhere), I took the chance to press the minister for action as soon as the consultation on the topic ends.

Crawley has the largest per capita Tamil population in the country outside of London. I have known and worked with the local Tamil population for many years and last Saturday I was privileged to be a guest of honour at one of the local Tamil school's Thai Pongal celebration, where I was given a copy of 'Still Counting the Dead' a harrowing account of the Tamil civilian death toll during the Sri Lankan civil war.

I don't think I've ever seen a council meeting as well-advertised as the one taking place today, so I'm sure most readers will be are aware that tonight Crawley Borough Council is be meeting to discuss its response to the Government's offer of delaying this year's local election. Over recent weeks I have spoken directly with much of the council, in addition to the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, about my concerns over this process.

The Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, Emma Reynolds, published the Animal Welfare Strategy last month, setting out measures to protect livestock, pets and wild animals across England. Launching the strategy, Emma Reynolds said: “We're a nation of animal lovers. This government is delivering the most ambitious animal welfare strategy in a generation.” This announcement includes the introduction of dog breeding reforms, such as the creation of a single registration system for all breeders and the banning of puppy smuggling.