I RECEIVED further good news last week on plans to have a police base and response team here in Stourbridge.

This has been a campaign of mine since I was elected in 2019 following the closure of the police station back in 2017 - much to the dismay of local people.

The update told me the police’s estates team is closing in on a location. Many of you have said that a good location would be the closed Wilko store and I agree, any location centrally would provide a reassuring presence in the town.

More funding is also helping the police and the community tackle crime. Improved CCTV in Stourbridge town centre is assisting the police in tracking down criminals and giving them the evidence to convict. In Norton, residents and our local police are setting up a Street Watch.

The extra funding will also bring in Street Wardens responsible for working with businesses and organisations to keep anti-social behaviour out of the town centre.

The police are working to implement a Public Spaces Protection Order (PSPOs) to provide Dudley Council with more power to swiftly move on any anti-social behaviour in the town.

All this shows the police, the council and myself are committed to tackling crime. But the icing on the cake will be that police base and I will continue to pester.

Congratulations to local officers who made an arrest following criminal damage to shops in Stourbridge town centre recently. I spoke to the commander about it following the alleged incidents. I know local businesses were pleased when I held a recent meeting with those affected by what happened.

Many thanks to everyone who came to my knife summit last week held at Stourbridge Football Club. That the West Midlands has the highest level of knife crime is a tragedy but with such wonderful and committed people, police officers and charities onboard we will save lives by getting knives off our streets. Another summit will take place soon to check on progress.

The attack on Israel by the terrorist group Hamas is an outrage that has cost at least 10 British people their lives. The deaths of innocent women and children on both sides is awful. Many might think this is far away from Stourbridge and it doesn’t matter, but it does. Already the cost of oil has risen and that will feed into the price of petrol and diesel at the pumps.