A strong economy underpins everything and is what affords us the quality public services we all value.  We need to keep our local economy strong too. 

I will continue to do all I can to support local businesses, and sectors especially important to our area.  Agriculture is a key sector for our environment as well as economic activity.  Tourism doesn’t just support employment, but helps revenue for village shops and pubs, and our town centres.  There are innovative local firms in advanced engineering, pharmaceuticals and much more.  And we must support new growth opportunities for Hampshire – English Wine is an example.

There have been over 600 new enterprise starts in East Hampshire in each of the last three years.  We need to make sure they also have space to grow, and can access the skilled workforce they need.  I pushed forward the development of T Levels as a new high-quality vocational qualification and am delighted to see Hampshire colleges in the first wave, from next September.