10 February 2023

At the start of this week myself and the Deputy Leader of the Council, Councillor Lisa Evans, had a briefing on a number of items due to come before Cabinet, including the results from a recent consultation regarding our Public Spaces Protection Orders (PSPOs) and our Council Plan for 2023-26. The Council Plan sets out our vision and hopes for the Borough looking forward to 2026 and it explains the priorities we will be working on in the coming year to bring the vision to life.

On Tuesday I had a pre-agenda meeting ahead of the Health and Wellbeing Board meeting on 22 February. The discussions included an update from the Alcohol Strategic Group.

Mid-week I managed to catch up on emails and get through some important paperwork.

Yesterday I attended a virtual webinar regarding the Local Government Financial Settlement, run by the Government's Levelling Up, Housing and Communities department. Later, I was at a Net Zero forum run by the Government's Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy. The Tees Valley is aiming to be the world's first "Net Zero" industrial cluster by 2040, so having these conversations now is critical in meeting that goal.

This morning I've attended a virtual meeting run by the North East Regional Employers' Organisation focussing on government pay in 2023. The cost of living crisis is making it harder to make ends meet, so it's important that pay is adjusted to reflect that. If you're affected by the cost of living crisis, support is available on the Council's cost of living support page..

This weekend I look forward to relaxing with my family. Middlesbrough continued their good form and enjoyed a 3-0 win over Blackpool at the weekend. We face Cardiff City on Saturday in Wales, where we will be expecting to bag another three points against the struggling side and close the gap to second place.