The Future of Town Centres and High Streets debate  

In a speech on 17th January Meg raised the issues that the local shops in Hackney are facing, lower turnovers and new competition from out-of-town shopping centres such as Westfield in Stratford. Meg emphasised the need for the action needed to sustain our local High Streets which are the hub of the local communities. Action is already taking place in Hackney, with the local council running events to encourage people to shop on the High Street in addition, Meg and the Hackney Gazette have run a joint awards scheme in order to encourage local businesses to up their game. (Read more about the shopfronts awards and how you can get involved here) Although this is a good start more is needed to be done, a combination of private sector investment and local leadership is necessary to encourage people to keep shopping locally. See full text of speech below: The main high street in my constituency...