Graham Jones

THE election in June was an exciting time for many and I was pleased to see so many young people getting involved in democracy.

In fact, one of the most uplifting scenes from the General Election was the queues of just young people – 12 in Rising Bridge polling station alone – waiting to vote after 9pm.

There’s a suggestion that there may be another but I don’t think there will be one for a good while.

The Conservatives have secured a majority with old fashioned ‘pork barrel’ politics. A £ 1.5billion payoff to Northern Ireland’s DUP Party.

All the infighting and chaos that’s come since the election have only demonstrated if not a split country since Brexit, a split parliament in what Brexit is best for the UK.

Bread and butter concerns, the staples of Parliament – like immigration, housing, transport and jobs – are being pushed out of the limelight in favour of spats between EU officials and in favour of internal jockeying within the Tory Party to be its unelected next leader ( and Prime Minister).

The Government needs to remember that left- behind communities voted for Brexit because they wanted a change in their everyday lives: from better housing and connectivity, to less pressure on public services and living standards.

They wanted more control over these issues and I’m not sure Brussels does figure as high in the concerns of ordinary people - it’s become a political quagmire as there is no such thing as out, just old agreements replaced by new ( and possibly inferior) agreements.

For me it is about ordinary people and bread and butter issues. This is why I’ve been campaigning for so long to have the M65 extended so that communities like Rossendale are connected with Manchester to the south and Leeds to the east.

The Northern Transport Strategy has recognised that eastwest road connections are substandard.

Their lack of capacity and their unreliability mean that people cannot move around easily, which in turn puts a ceiling on the output of the northern economy.

Again, the focus has been on flashy projects rather than the efficient development of road networks.

Plans for HS2 and connectivity between the major northern cities still dominate, to the detriment of the outlying towns and villages which also need better connectivity and which are suffering from chronic congestion on inadequate roads.

Connecting Preston with Leeds, and including spurs to include small towns, would be a good start.

Congratulations to my fellow Rossendale MP Jake Berry on his promotion as Northern Powerhouse minister. The M65 should be top of his agenda.

Without real economic drivers young people will continue to up sticks and leave home if the transport links aren’t there for them to quickly travel into the cities and local economies are hampered by poor business connectivity, draining our local economies of talent and opportunity.

To prevent them from leaving, the Government has got to start getting serious about northern transport and start treating the North West the same as the south.

George Osborne started talking about the need for a Northern Powerhouse but delivered nothing and will be remembered for delivering nothing.

We were promised better infrastructure, more investment and equal footing with the south.

For every £ 1 spent in the north £ 6 is spent in the south. Add to that Theresa May’s £ 1.5 billion handed to the DUP across the Irish Sea.

As Brexit trundles on, I hope the Government doesn’t forget about the everyday issues that matter to people.