I’m proud that our county has one of the highest numbers of armed forces veterans anywhere in the country. Through the Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers in Aycliffe Business Park to the Field Hospital Detachment in the town centre to the town’s origins in the munitions factories of the second world war, Newton Aycliffe has a long and distinguished history of military connections.
That’s why in my first year as your Member of Parliament, it has been a privilege to take part in the Royal Air Force strand of the Armed Forces Parliamentary Scheme. This cross-party programme backed by Parliament and the Ministry of Defence, started in 1989. Its aim is to give Members of Parliament and the House of Lords an insight into how our military works and some of the realities of life for our personnel.
It’s been a huge privilege to visit RAF bases up and down the country over the last year, meeting RAF pilots, engineers, air traffic controllers, military police and many other service men and women, including people from our area.
This year’s scheme culminated in a visit to British Forces Cyprus in the first week of Parliament’s summer break. The British personnel in Cyprus, including the Army, Navy, Air Force and Joint Signals Unit, are involved in a number of vital missions. They’re working with great skill and huge courage to tackle terror groups in the Middle East that threaten our security, to keep open international shipping lanes that are vital for British trade, and to play an important role in providing humanitarian assistance in Gaza.
It was a huge honour to spend time with our personnel, seeing firsthand the work that they’re doing and hearing about their experiences. As well as meeting British troops involved in our operations, it was also a privilege to meet members of the British Army working as United Nations peacekeepers on the island. While we were in Cyprus, the island was hit by very serious wildfires. We saw the RAF chinook helicopter teams making a crucial contribution to firefighting efforts in support of the Republic of Cyprus authorities.
Our cross-party delegation was also privileged to meet the British High Commissioner in Nicosia to hear more about Britain’s relations with Cyprus as well as senior representatives from the Republic of Cyprus government. It was good to learn more about the strong relationship between our two countries and the vital role that British bases in Cyprus play in the defence and security of Britain, our allies and the wider Middle Eastern region.
Over the last 12 months, I’ve been hugely impressed by the work our RAF servicemen and women do across our country and around the globe. As well as learning more about our military bases, aircraft and equipment, it’s been really helpful to talk to hundreds of our personnel about their day-to-day experiences. Those who service in uniform to protect us deserve our full support. That’s why I’m proud that the government is making significant investments in defence which will not only improve our security, but will fund improvements in the accommodation and facilities for all those in the Armed Forces. I’ll continue to be a powerful champion in Parliament for the servicemen and women from our area and our country.