Barrow and Furness MP Simon Fell reveals how he has been supporting the community this week.

While in Westminster this week, I was pleased to be able to speak up on behalf of some of the local institutions that mean so much to us and which glue our community together.

Westminster Hall is the second Chamber of the House of Commons - allowing for smaller and more intimate debates about issues which you can't normally find time for on the green benches.

I spoke in an important debate on football club attendance, urging the Government to (and I apologise for the hashtag) #LetFansIn. Like many clubs across the country, and especially in the north, Barrow AFC sits at the very heart of our community.

Their recent promotion shouldn't have left them in the position of facing – through no fault of their own – a precarious financial future, which would be even worse were it not for the faithful fans who have stuck by them and bought season tickets.

I made clear that the Bluebirds don’t want handouts: they want instead to stand on their own two feet again with pride, and with their fans back at Holker Street watching the games. Without fans, football is nothing, so I urged Ministers to collaborate with clubs like ours who have worked so hard to develop Covid secure measures to #LetTheFansIn as soon as this most recent lockdown is over.

I spoke in another debate on Wednesday to urge the Government to do everything it its power to strengthen the economy in the North. Much has been said about ‘levelling up’, and progress is being made, but much more remains to be done. I drew attention to the challenges we badly need to address locally, many of which are exacerbated as a result of our geography.

These include the improvements required not only in our roads and railway, but also in our broadband and phone coverage. I also referred to the economic uncertainties that we face, some of which have been long-term, and others that have emerged more recently as a result of pandemic.

Emphasising that our strength is in our people, our amazing community, and the deep pool of skills in our region, I stressed that we now need to invest in the opportunities offered in sectors like advanced manufacturing, life sciences and green energy.

To achieve this, we must redouble our efforts to secure the infrastructure we need, and focus on the areas where we can meaningfully grow skills and jobs to help us recover. Cumbria is ideally placed to be the beating heart of a green industrial revolution.

So, as a member of the Northern Research Group, I am supporting the push for a Northern Economic Recovery Plan for communities and constituencies across the North, so that we can follow a structured and positive path out of this pandemic.

Another vital element of our community of course is the availability of local healthcare. Members of the staff, family members of patients, and a number of other local residents, contacted me early last week to flag their fears that the Ramsey Unit at Furness General Hospital potentially going to move out of our area altogether.

I have written to the Chief Executive of Lancashire and South Cumbria NHS Foundation Trust about the future of the Unit to get to the truth.

The Ramsey Unit provides vital care for vulnerable patients.

My understanding is that the Trust plans to move patients temporarily to Morecambe and/or Kendal, while building work is carried out. But even this will mean that staff, patients and families will have to travel 80 miles a day to work, and/or to visit.

In addition, the future of the Unit has not been made clear, so whether (or when) the service will return to Furness is not known. Obviously, if the Unit were to close, the effect on the staff, patients and families would be devastating. I understand that assurances were given when the Trust took over the Unit that any plans to change or close the service would require proper staff and community consultation.

I am deeply concerned that this has not happened. We need clarity that this vital unit will be retained in Furness now.