More than 150 companies have received £50 million in funding since the launch of a new investment programme last year. The Midlands Engine Investment Fund was set up to address a market gap in finance available to small and medium enterprises across the region.

Nearly 500 hundred jobseekers flocked to the 6th Halesowen & Rowley Regis Jobs and Skills Fair, organised by local MP James Morris and Jobcentreplus, at Cornbow Hall in Halesowen. This was the 11th jobs and skills event James has organised since 2010.

Mike Wood, Dudley South’s MP, has said his recent Jobs Fair at Brierley Hill Civic Hall was a “huge success”.

Rugby MP Mark Pawsey has had an inside look at the investment taking place in soft drinks manufacturer Britvic’s Rugby site, bringing 80 new jobs to the area. Shown around by Director of Production Jeremy Howard, Mark saw how Britvic’s iconic brands are produced in Rugby and how their investment

Stourbridge MP, Margot James, has welcomed proposals to build homes on a disused college site blighted by vandalism and anti-social behaviour. Margot also called on Dudley Council to ensure that green space adjacent to the site is brought back into community use.

West Worcestershire MP Harriett Baldwin has called for more train services, admitting being frustrated by Great Western Railway.

Worcester’s MP, Robin Walker, has welcomed news that the unemployment rate in Worcester continued to fall in the past month, dropping to 1,000 in May, or 1.5% - the lowest it has been since January 2016.

Bridgnorth’s recently re-elected MP Philip Dunne has welcomed today's announcement by Shropshire Community Health NHS Trust of work to improve flooring at Bridgnorth Community Hospital.
 

Early on Friday morning, Eddie Hughes was elected as the new Member of Parliament for Walsall North, the first Conservative to win the seat since 1979.

Protecting the West Midlands greenbelt from residential development forms the basis of the housing policy proposed by Mayoral candidate Andy Street.