THE final week of Parliamentary recess has been heavy on ministerial duties and involved a great deal of travel.

Sadly, this meant that, for the first time ever, I was unable to attend Mencap’s annual Sports Day – normally a linchpin in my summer calendar. I look forward to catching up with the charity’s leaders soon to discuss how I can support them in their tireless work with families across South Wiltshire.

I was pleased to see the exciting programme of events associated with Wiltshire Creative’s Lift Off! weekend.

I wholeheartedly applaud the aims of the new organisation and its commitment to making arts accessible and part of the community it serves.

Although some wet and wild Bank Holiday weather did not smile on all their endeavours, I know that the organisation has the vision to deliver great things for Salisbury and I have meetings scheduled in September and October to hear more about what is on the horizon.

On a separate note, my congratulations to Fisherton History Society and Frogg Moody on the inaugural Festival of Salisbury History. A lot of people feel a deep connection to Salisbury’s past and it is fascinating to see that interest nurtured and shared in such a creative way.

While all this excitement has been going on, I have been touring Scotland, including the Outer Hebrides, to see close up the issues around RBS’s recent review on branch closures in some of the remotest areas in the country.

These are, ultimately, commercial decisions for the banks and it is challenging to reconcile the needs of communities with the inevitable impact of the sea-change in how many people choose to do their banking.

While in transit, I took a call from my own mum, looking for my help with a banking task. I was able to do everything she needed on my phone while waiting at the check-in desk at Glasgow airport – a fact which rather underscores the situation in which we now find ourselves.

I have also been visiting companies that use Fintech to make the administration of transactions easier and I have attended a round table discussion at Edinburgh Business School about what the government can do to ensure that the UK continues to be a major hub for Fintech innovation.

There was an opportunity en route to visit some charities in Glasgow that deal with financial exclusion. The ‘Breathing Space’ scheme is one of my most important ministerial responsibilities, ensuring a scheme is delivered that provides respite for those in problem debt.

I look forward to returning to Parliament on Tuesday and resuming a normal schedule.