AT the time of writing, I am in Parliament about to go to the Chamber to listen to the Chancellor’s Spring Budget.

I’ll be following up with a summary of key announcements and how they relate to my constituency through my website and an e-newsletter, so get in touch with my office if you are interested to receive this.

I’ve met the Chancellor a number of times in the last couple of weeks to discuss the Budget, making clear the needs of the Westcountry.

In this vein, I welcome the tremendously positive news that Jaguar Land Rover owner Tata have confirmed their investment of £4bn into building the UK’s biggest electric vehicle battery factory in Bridgwater.

Securing high quality jobs for our area that will help drive our economy forward has been a priority of mine since being elected.

This announcement is a game changer not just for our area but for the whole of the UK.

It will create 4,000 jobs locally and thousands more in the wider supply chain which will boost the economy, with significant benefits for this constituency.

I’ve been engaging with educational establishments across our area who are successfully working with businesses to skill-up the future workforce.

We must build on this new world that is opening up in Somerset and I shall be continuing the dialogue with establishments like the University Centre, Somerset.

More broadly, the recent upgrades in infrastructure I have worked hard to secure, particularly the upgrade of Taunton Rail Station, improvements to the road network and with the forthcoming Wellington Rail Station on the cards, the whole area is ready to take advantage of this incredible new boost, providing services needed to link to the new site.

The firm is aiming to produce its first batteries in Somerset in 2026 and is set to provide almost half of the battery production needed nationally by 2030.

We are fortunate to have top-class educational establishments in the constituency, including Bridgwater & Taunton College, who should be congratulated on winning the RCU award for Support for Students as part of the Association of Colleges Beacon Awards.

The college won this award for work they do in devising individual programmes for those with additional needs and learning difficulties.

There’s some good news at Court Fields School, in Wellington, having secured funding from the Football Foundation’s funding partners, including Government, an all-weather 3G sports pitch will be developed.

Making a big splash, French Weir site on the River Tone is in the 27 applications announced for consultation as a new bathing water site by DEFRA.

As the former Water Minister, I worked to ensure more inland bathing water sites like this one in Taunton, were brought forward.

I encourage you to have your say in the consultation which closes Sunday, 10th March.

As a Government, we are cleaning up our rivers, and in this respect I was proud to instigate the Plan for Water so we can crack down on water companies and we have increased fines and banned bonuses if any environmental harm is demonstrated together with a raft of other measures.

We have also introduced a target for nobody to live more than a 15-minute walk from a green or blue (water) space, which is why additional bathing sites will be so beneficial.

Finally, it was an honour to represent the UK as a Vice-President at the sixth session of the United Nations Environment Assembly (UNEA-6) in Kenya last week.

UNEA-6 provided an opportunity on the international stage to demonstrate the UK's commitment to collaborative action to address the profound environmental challenges we face.