We are in the sixth week of lockdown during the COVID-19
pandemic.
At the beginning of the week it was good to see our Prime
Minister Boris Johnson back at work following his recovery from his own illness
with the virus. As a country we need his strong leadership never more so than
at this time, and his speech outside Downing Street on Monday clearly showed
the Government’s priorities in ensuring we do not risk a second peak of cases
by ending lockdown early.
The daily briefings we are having from Downing Street are
showing that lockdown is working for Cornwall, with a relatively small number
of cases and deaths due to COVID-19 both here and in the wider south west. This
is helped by our geography, with sea to the north, south and west, as well as
our rural nature, meaning the lockdown measures have more of a chance of
working and being effective if followed correctly. Although we have been in
lockdown for well over a month, now is not the time to stop following the
guidance. Thank you to everyone who has been and continues to follow the guidelines
for keeping yourselves and our wider communities safe.
In terms of additional support for our businesses on Monday
I was pleased to see the Chancellor Rishi Sunak announce a new Bounce Back Loan
scheme to support small businesses during the COVID-19 pandemic.
There are many small businesses in Truro and Falmouth that
will benefit from this scheme. Along with colleagues across Cornwall I have
been working hard to ensure feedback from local businesses is received in the
Government and I am pleased to see them listen and come forward with another
measure to help support small businesses at this difficult time. This scheme
will launch on Monday, please check my website for more details
I have also been in regular discussions with The Department
for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) regarding the beef and dairy
sector. I have always been a strong supporter
of our farming and agriculture sector, and we have many excellent examples in
Truro and Falmouth. It has never been more important to support our local farms
at this time. If you are able to, please buy good cuts of British beef, lots of
local milk, cream and cheese. Like many
of us, Cornish dairy farmers, for example, have a lot of their income reliant
on the tourist trade with ice cream and clotted cream, and if the tourist
season continues to be badly affected this year, they will also take a hit, so
supporting them in any way we can will help them get through this crisis.
My team and I are here to help during this crisis. You can email me at Cherilyn.mackrory.mp@parliament.uk, call me on 0207 2193713 (messages will be picked up), and my website www.cherilynmackrory.org.uk and Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/thisischerilyn are all regularly updated with matters relating both to the current crisis and other useful news and information. Please do get in touch if you need any help or have questions for me.
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