Harlow MP, Robert Halfon, has celebrated levelling up in the town and across the county with a visit to Harlow College to open their new Electric Vehicle Centre and hosted an event in Parliament to showcase the work being done to support the Levelling-Up in the local community.
This week, Robert was joined by Essex County Council and other local MPs at a reception in the House of Commons to celebrate how the Government’s national levelling up agenda has been embedded at a local level. In recent years, levelling-up has accelerated forward at pace in Harlow, which has been designated a Levelling Up Priority Area by both the Government and Essex County Council. Recent investment secured by Halfon to build an even better Harlow includes:
- £40 million of levelling up funding to regenerate our Town Centre;
- £85 million for the new Junction 7A on the M11;
- £16.5 million to upgrade Harlow College and open the Advanced Manufacturing Centre;
- £27 million for the new Enterprise Zone;
- £23 million to upgrade local school buildings;
- Hundreds of millions of investment to move the UK Health Security Agency to Harlow.
A further £100,000 investment has taken place at Harlow College to open the new Electric Vehicle Centre, offering training opportunities up to Level 4 for young people and adults in Harlow to meet the future skills needs of this important sector and supporting the UK’s transition to net-zero.
Robert, who is also the Government’s Skills Minister, has welcomed this investment in skills development and opportunities for apprenticeships. This Conservative Government introduced apprenticeships back in 2010 and since then over 5 million apprenticeships have been completed nationally. In Harlow, there have been over 8,000 apprenticeships since they began in 2010.
Commenting on the new Electric Vehicle Centre and levelling up in Harlow, Mr Halfon said, “I have visited Harlow College over one hundred times now so it was wonderful on this occasion to be invited again to open their new electric vehicle centre. Thanks to the Government’s investment into Essex County Council this new centre will be a fantastic demonstration of the importance of Levelling Up at both a national and local level, bringing real-time benefits to Harlow residents.
“It is vital that we continue to offer new skills and technological advances for local people to enable them to take the first step onto the ladder of opportunity to reach the ultimate goals of good jobs, security and prosperity. Building a skills nation is vital for the future and if young people are able to take that first step now, and grasp the opportunity with both hands under the strong leadership of Harlow College, I have no doubt they will succeed for generations to come.
“I work hard everyday for our town to ensure we secure all the funding that we need to build an even better Harlow. Under this Conservative Government, Harlow has had investment like never before, truly worth hundreds of millions. We are regenerating our town for our residents, building an even better Harlow and making it a great place to live, work and grow up.”
