Team Labour in the East Midlands held their annual conference in Leicester this weekend. The conference  is attended by over 250 people from across the region including MPs, Parliamentary Candidates, Councillors, Trade Unionists and members of the Labour Party.

The East Midlands will be a touchstone area for labour in the General Election next May. It is a diverse region with villages, towns and cities in which people want to get on but are being held back by a Government which is out-of-touch with their lives.

I spoke about how Labour has made progress in the region since the last election – gaining 285 more councillors. And we now lead 15 councils – up from 5 in 2010. Each Labour council and each additional councillor is making a real difference for their communities in tough times. But we need Labour in Government so we can address the concerns of people in the East Midlands and make real difference to their lives – including on childcare, on energy prices and protecting the NHS.