Although the City Council was in recess during the month of July, it was still an exceptionally busy time, not least because of the General Election on July 4. As a candidate at that General Election, I was honoured to be elected to serve Glasgow West at Westminster. I am very grateful to everyone who voted in that election and will work hard to repay their trust in me and in the Labour Government.

At the moment I am still the Councillor for Drumchapel/Anniesland but I expect that there will be a by-election in the near future to replace me in that role. Meanwhile, myself and Cllr Paul Carey, continue to work together to serve all the communities of Ward 14.

It's been a bit of a whirlwind since the General Election with several weeks of training, being sworn in to serve in Parliament and watching the pageantry of the King’s Speech. At the same time, I have been engaged in the important tasks of finding an office, setting up surgeries and recruiting staff to support me in my work. Meanwhile, I can be contacted at patricia.ferguson.mp@parliament.uk Before the election we knew that the Conservative Government had presided over a chaotic system and had been playing fast and loose with the nation’s finances but since entering government we have found that the situation is even worse than we had thought - a £22billion black hole at the heart of the nation’s finances and no plan as to how to fill it.

Labour’s Chancellor, Rachel Reeves, is determined to restore economic stability to our country and has set about doing so. The Government has already created a National Wealth Fund. This will help to grow our economy and create good jobs with good pay across the country. GB energy, which will be headquartered in Scotland, will provide energy security, create jobs, and bring down fuel bills. The legislation to support this important work has already been introduced to parliament.

In the last few weeks, I have been able to meet with many organisations and groups that operate within Glasgow West. Thank you to them all for their warm welcome and for their encouragement too. I have also met with some of our biggest employers locally to find out how I can support them in my work.

There is a great deal more to do and I am excited about playing my part in bringing about change for Glasgow West