Bim Afolami MP meets Chancellor Jeremy Hunt to discuss local priorities.

Hitchin's Member of Parliament met with the Chancellor of the Exchequer, Jeremy Hunt, to raise local people's priorities this week.

Topics raised included the cost of living crisis and financing for renewable and sustainable energy projects.

Mr Afolami said of his meeting with the Chancellor: "I had a very productive meeting with the Chancellor to discuss a whole range of issues – including the Government's action to combat the cost of living, where households across our area can expect to continue to receive support throughout this year.  

"We also discussed the financing of renewable and sustainable energy projects – including nuclear. Renewable and sustainable energy is the answer to delivering better energy security through reliable, homegrown and clean energy and also helps us to reach our net zero ambitions."

Hunt – who was the longest-serving health secretary in the 74-year history of the NHS – has previously been slammed by critics for failing to take sufficient action to boost recruitment while in the top job between 2012 and 2018.

Under his health watch, Hunt has also been criticised for overseeing missed NHS targets, as well as lengthening waits for patients and allowing hospital infrastructure to decay, while offering unworkable solutions, along with funding boosts that vanished under scrutiny.

Hunt oversaw years of historically low funding increases - 1 per cent, compared with an average of six per cent between 1997 and 2010, and compared with the 4.3 per cent the Office of Budget Responsibility recommends. Hunt is also said to have ignored NHS staff shortages while health secretary - leading to a depressing patient experience and huge falls in staff morale.

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There are currently 100,000 vacancies in the NHS, with treatment waiting lists rising to 6.4 million.