It’s been another busy week and I’ve split my time between Westminster and the constituency.

The week began with a very moving flag raising ceremony in support of Ukraine, on the third anniversary of the full scale invasion of the country by Russia. Ukrainian residents of Dawlish and surrounding areas attended and they, as always, appreciated the show of support.

I also had opportunity to talk with a number of Ukranians who have made their homes here, and listened to their concerns following the talks between Russia and the US.

Whilst we all are hoping for the end of the war, the US and President Trump don’t appear to have Ukraine’s best interests at heart, calling President Zelinsky a dictator must be where the line is drawn, and I hope that the whole political spectrum in the UK will speak with one voice in opposition to Trump’s lies.

Another issue that has been raised with me recently by a constituent is regarding a support fund available to adopters to enable access to therapy services for their children. The adoption and special guardian support fund (ASGSF) provides funds to local authorities and regional adoption agencies to pay for essential therapeutic services for eligible adoptive, special guardianship order and child arrangement order families.

The funding is currently in place until March 2025, but as yet there has been no confirmation as to whether this vital offering will continue to be funded past March. This is a real concern for a lot of parents who access this funding to ensure that their children are getting the support they require.

I have tabled a question to the Department for Education who are responsible for providing this funding, asking them to confirm that the funding will continue into 2025 / 26. The cancellation of this funding could potentially leave thousands of vulnerable children without adoptive places as prospective adopters may not wish to proceed with the process knowing there is little support available to them and their children.

I have also been meeting with companies who are finding it increasingly difficult for them and their clients to navigate the Access to Work application process and obtain ongoing payments under the scheme.

It is a scheme facilitated by the DWP and is designed to help people with physical or mental health conditions get into or to stay in work. I have been told there are a number of issues that are being experienced, from poor customer service when job coaches and clients are calling the service, to unnecessarily complex forms that clients are asked to complete, to funding applications getting “lost” in the system and clients having to start the process again.

I will be tabling questions to the Ministers responsible for the DWP and requesting answers so I can help address the concerns of these companies who are representing vulnerable people in my constituency.