Feb32017

News story: Chris Skidmore meets with students to encourage democratic participation in the West Midlands

HM Government
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Minister for the Constitution Chris Skidmore met with students from Q3 Academy Great Barr today to discuss ways of increasing voter registration in the lead up to the election for the first mayor of the West Midlands.

In addition to raising awareness about registering to vote, the visit explored the particular experiences of students living in the West Midlands and the challenges they may encounter.

Chris Skidmore, Minister for the Constitution, said:

Today’s visit will help this government better understand the experiences of young people, so that we can deliver a democracy that truly works for everyone. The students at Great Barr showed real enthusiasm for ensuring that their voices are heard, and debated a number of ideas about how to promote the importance of democratic participation among their peers.

This is particularly meaningful in the lead up to the election for the first mayor of the West Midlands. Regardless of who you are, every voice matters and we encourage you to register to vote in what will be a significant moment for your area.

Mr Mark Arnull, Head of School at Q3 Academy Great Barr, said:

We are delighted to welcome Mr Chris Skidmore MP to Q3 Academy Great Barr today to promote greater voter registration, especially in the preparation of the election of the first Mayor of West Midlands.

The more we engage in the democratic process the better we can strengthen British Values and democracy. At Q3 Academy young people’s voices are heard and they need to be fully represented at the political level too.

The minister is visiting the West Midlands as part of his Every Voice Matters Tour. The tour will see him visit every part of the country to understand how to tackle barriers to voter registration.

As part of his trip to the West Midlands, the minister also visited Aston University, where he presented the royal warrant for the Regius Professorship for research in Pharmacy.

Feb32017

408 mln trips during Lunar New Year holiday

East Asia
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The week-long Spring Festival holiday witnessed 408 millon passenger trips in China, up 2.1 percent year on year, data from the Ministry of Transport (MOT) showed Friday.

Between Jan. 27 and Feb. 2, the number of road trips totaled 336 million, a 0.8 percent increase from last year, while train trips reached 52 million with an annual increase of 8.8 percent.

More breakdown figures showed that air travel exceeded 9.82 million trips, surging 14.9 percent from last year, while boat trips topped 10.35 million, a rise of 3.5 percent.

About 2.98 billion trips are expected to be made during this year’s Spring Festival travel rush, known as Earth’s biggest human migration, between Jan. 13 and Feb. 21.

The average distance traveled was 262 km as most trips were intraprovince and 87.8 percent of the trips were within a range of 500 km, MOT data showed.

Nearly 80 percent of the travels were for visits to relatives and friends, as the festival is the most important occasion for family reunions.

The Guangzhou South Railway Station was the most used transportation hub during the migration, followed by Shanghai Hongqiao Railway Station and Beijing West Railway Station, all of which are seated in major cities with significant populations of migrant workers.