New Hartlepool MP Jonathan Brash reflects on 'whirlwind' first weeks in job and lays out his priorities
Hartlepool's new MP has stressed there has been "no celebrating" and he has got straight on with “making our town a better place for us all to live”.
Labour’s Jonathan Brash was confirmed as Hartlepool’s new Member of Parliament after winning the seat in the General Election at the start of July.
Sitting down to discuss his first few weeks in the job, Cllr Brash, who also represents Burn Valley on Hartlepool Borough Council, said he has “hit the ground running” in looking to support people in the town.
This has included writing and speaking to ministers over issues including new nuclear, support for colleges, crime and antisocial behaviour and children’s social care.
He has also made his maiden speech in the House of Commons, using it to pay tribute to Hartlepool, its history and its people.
Cllr Bash said: “It’s been fantastic, in many ways overwhelming, and it’s a whirlwind, there’s so many new things to learn and understand when you’re down in Westminster.
“I’m really pleased that we’re getting settled and frankly we’re getting on with the job.”
He highlighted aims including ensuring that Hartlepool is “at the heart of the green industrial revolution”, as well as tackling the “major issue” of crime and antisocial behaviour, such as around the ramp in the town centre.
“We need a more permanent police presence in our town and one of the things the Labour government has promised is 13,000 more police officers, and it’s my job to ensure Hartlepool gets its fair share of that.”
How he entered politics
Cllr Brash first joined the Labour Party in his early 20s after being inspired by the challenges he saw in Hartlepool, before serving as a councillor in Burn Valley for 10 years from 2006, and returning to the position in 2021.
The 43-year-old father of two said: “What’s always been my ambition is to be in the position to do good, to help, to be able to affect change.
“I want to stand up for Hartlepool people on the biggest stage that I can and have the loudest voice I can to fight to make my town a better place for us all to live.”
He continued: “When you’re from a place it’s different, it’s personal; when you see the challenges people face, they often affect you too.
“I understand the challenges facing Hartlepool people because I am a Hartlepool person.”
Serving the town and country
Cllr Brash stressed the new Labour government is “in service of the country” and is aiming to think long term and bring stability “both politically and economically”.
He continued: “We shouldn’t make false promises to people that there is some magic bullet that’s going to solve all of our towns problems, there’s not.
“It’s going to be about hard work and driving forward the change we need, but we are starting.”
Cllr Brash also reflected on how the position of Labour, who lead the council in Hartlepool following May’s local elections, has “mirrored” the party’s position nationally, with both previously being “rejected by the public”.
He said: “You have to look at yourself and work out what you need to change, and in Hartlepool we have radically changed the Labour Party, we have put it back in the service of Hartlepool people.
“We’re not celebrating, we’re not cheering, we’re not doing a lap of honour, now is about getting down to work, about actually delivering, because people can change their mind very, very quickly.”