Richard Holden, MP for North West Durham, has received an agreement from a Defence Minister to visit Cook Defence Systems in Stanhope.
Richard spoke in the House of Commons to request that Jeremy Quin MP, Minister for Procurement in the Ministry of Defence, visit the constituency for a visit to Cook Defence. You can watch Richard speak here.
William Cook group are a family-owned business that produce parts for the rail, defence and energy sectors, working closely with the Ministry of Defence as the only British manufacturer of tracks for the British Army’s tanks and armoured vehicles. William Cook also export tracks and other equipment to allied armies globally. Cook Defence Systems is the manufacturing arm of their business and is based in Stanhope.
Cook Defence Systems have previously hosted Richard, who visited earlier this year to see a £5 million investment into their new machining facilities, which had created 15 new jobs for the area, including apprenticeships for young people. You can read about this here.
During his question to the Secretary of State, Richard praised the work that Cook Defence do and requested that the Minister visit North West Durham to see first-hand the work that they do for the Ministry of Defence. Responding, the Minister said that he would be delighted to visit as soon as his diary allows.
Commenting, Richard said:
“I am delighted that the Procurement Minister has agreed to come to North West Durham to visit Cook Defence Systems at the earliest opportunity. They do significant work on a national and international level supporting the Armed Forces of Britain and our allies. But they also do a huge amount of work on a local level, supporting our community and taking on apprenticeships to support young people going into the workplace.
“We are fortunate to have so many really industrial manufacturing businesses in the constituency and I want to ensure that not only do they get the support they deserve, but that they also get the recognition that they deserve for the work they do.”
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