David Rutley MP has welcomed a statement by the Home Secretary, Theresa May MP, on the Government’s steps to tackle metal theft.

There has been growing concern in the Macclesfield constituency and across the country about the scale and frequency of metal theft.  The thefts have seen lead stripped from church roofs, brass name plaques taken from outside businesses and Macclesfield Town Football Club has also been a victim of thefts.  Nationally, metal theft has led to train delays, telephone lines being cut off and even the theft of brass plates from war memorials.

Pupils from Upton Priory visited the Houses of Parliament last week and were reunited with a sword designed by former students.

16 pupils in years 4 to 6 made the journey to London to find out more about the work of MPs and Lords.  The pupils met with David Rutley MP in the afternoon and had the chance to see the Parliamentary Sword designed by Amy Bowers, Alicia Pankhurst and Jack Gooding, all former Upton Primary students, in 2010.  The students had won David’s competition to design a sword to hang in the House of Commons.  It is carved from Macclesfield oak, making reference to the town’s silk heritage, along with values like confidence, community, friendship and belonging.  

This week David Rutley MP signed a Book of Commitment in the House of Commons, in doing so pledging his commitment to Holocaust Memorial Day and honouring those who died during the Holocaust.

Friday January 27th will mark the 67th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz-Birkenau, the Nazi concentration and extermination camp which is the site of the largest mass murder in history – and in the weeks running up to the day, the Holocaust Educational Trust placed a Book of Commitment in the House of Commons, giving MPs the chance to honour those who were persecuted and killed during the Holocaust and encouraging people to actively speak out against prejudice and bigotry today.

MACCLESFIELD MP David Rutley spoke at a public meeting on Friday 20th January to discuss practical community based solutions for better broadband provision in rural communities.

The meeting, hosted in association with The Countryside Alliance, attracted people from across the Macclesfield constituency.  Attendees heard Cheshire East Council set out the work it is doing to ensure that rural communities have improved access to broadband.  While much of the constituency will benefit from superfast broadband over the next couple of years, there are many outlying, rural communities that still struggle to get good broadband coverage.  A number of local community-led solutions were reviewed, including satellite, mobile broadband and optical fibre technologies.