This is my tenth weekly message to residents throughout Sutton Coldfield.

I have had a large number of emails over the past week about the Prime Minister’s advisor Dominic Cummings and I have now replied to all those constituents that have emailed me.

It has been clear from reading my emails over the last few days that there is a huge amount of anger towards Dominic Cummings. Many people have made significant sacrifices over the past 2 months and like many others my own family is forcibly separated by this lockdown.

I am grateful for all those that took the time to outline their views and for the many personal and heartfelt accounts that were included in these emails.

I want to highlight some other news from the past few days.

The new NHS Test and Trace service has launched across England. The scheme will ensure that anyone who tests positive for coronavirus will be contacted by one of a team of 25,000 contact tracers. Contract tracers will help find those who have been in close contact with infected individuals and help us to prevent the spread of the virus. This will I hope speed up the end of the lockdown.

We have also signed over 100 new deals to boost our PPE supply.  The Government has supported industry to significantly boost our domestic production and we are now manufacturing millions of items of PPE in the UK including facemasks, visors, gowns and aprons. I have been closely following the issue of our local PPE supplies in Sutton Coldfield and I do hope that these new deals will help ensure that our supply lines are bolstered, especially into our care homes.

The Government has also announced a new £50 million fund for councils across England to prepare for the safe reopening of high streets and other retail spaces. Yesterday the Prime Minister confirmed that car showrooms and outdoor markets can reopen from Monday with all shops in England able to open with social distancing measures in place from the 15th of June. We are lucky in Sutton Coldfield to have such a variety of local businesses and I continue to work with many local businesses to ensure that their applications for grants and loans come through at this difficult time.

This week I have received several emails about Sutton Park and our other green spaces. As the lockdown eases the Park is obviously playing a pivotal role for many families and everyone must be careful to use it responsibly. I have raised the issue of litter and overflowing bins with Birmingham City Council and I remain in contact with the Police about the few incidents of anti-social behaviour.

As your MP I am here to help so if you feel I can assist with any concerns, please do not hesitate to get in contact by emailing me on andrew.mitchell.mp@parliament.uk