I WAS delighted to welcome Baroness Neville-Rolfe at The Wilton Event on Saturday. It was a great success and a pleasure to spend time with a team with such a positive and constructive agenda for their town.

Wilton is fortunate to have such a dynamic group of people bringing together business and community interests – busy individuals, who still find time to invest time and effort in the future of their community.

The ambitions set out in the Wilton Heritage Plan appreciate the longterm value of improved infrastructure but also bring into sharp focus the importance of pride and a sense of identity in the community – twin aims which support and nurture each other.

For my part, I am keen to push forward with necessary improvements to Salisbury’s railway station and to work to improve journey times to London and, like the members of the Wilton’s business community I spoke with on Saturday, I believe that a new Wilton Parkway station must form part of that narrative.

Wilton will also be exceptionally well placed to seize the opportunity presented by the Transwilts project – a plan that will ultimately link Swindon and Southampton Parkway and vastly improve life for many commuters.

If this project progresses, it could greatly improve links with Salisbury and elsewhere, ease traffic congestion and give a new and useful lease of life to the often under-used park and ride. I will be attending a meeting in Devizes at the weekend to ensure that neighbouring MPs are aware of the scale of local interest in the project and what we would hope to achieve.

It has been a busy week in Parliament, dominated by the Trade Union Bill, which I see as a sensible attempt to create reasonable thresholds for strike action.

It is only fair that, when strikes do take place, they are based on a clear mandate from members.