There were some positive signs prior to the election – inflation was starting to fall and the most recent Quarterly Economic Survey from the Chamber was showing strong signs of confidence.

However, there is no doubt that recent years have been uncertain and challenging for a whole host of reasons and now, hopefully, we can have stable foundations on which to build for the future.

One of the bills in the King’s Speech that particularly caught my attention was around the establishment of Skills England, and it gives me hope that we can tackle the skills crisis head on.

I like the fact that it will bring together national government, local government, providers and stakeholders to provide an opportunity for everyone to work together to help solve this issue which, if we’re honest, has been around for decades.

I am also pleased that the Government is looking to move at pace and get this moving in the next 12 to 18 months.

Of course, there is always an emphasis on young people when it comes to skills and that is quite right and understandable. But this is a moment when we can also look at how we work with those who have been out of the workforce for a long time and, also, how we support those people who are in the middle of their career and might be looking for a change.

It’s interesting and it’s exciting – and I believe the Chamber, which has played such a key role in the Local Skills Improvement Plan over the past year or so, has to be at the heart of the conversation regionally and nationally.

Finally, I’d like to send congratulations to Matt Western and Sir Jeremy Wright on their re-election to Parliament. They have both represented Mid-Warwickshire for several years now and we will continue to make sure that we engage with both in order to make sure the voice of business is heard by our MPs in this region.

As I said at the top, we believe this can be an exciting time for everyone and we’ll look to build on that with both MPs and every other decision-maker and stakeholder in our area.