LABOUR Warrington North MP Charlotte Nichols says she wants Warrington to be a place where ‘everyone has a fair share’ of its success.

The Labour politician has been in the role since 2019.

She was re-elected in the General Election on July 4, with a majority of 9,190.

Ms Nichols has discussed her vision and hopes for the area.

“I want Warrington to be the best place in which to grow up and grow old, and a place where everyone has a fair share of our town’s success – driving investment into regeneration, provision of affordable quality housing, and decent employment,” she said.

“I want to help improve the quality of support in social care and mental health, and champion civic society organisations. We deserve to be a happy, healthy, secure and inclusive community.”

Furthermore, Ms Nichols says her biggest priority is securing a commitment for a new hospital, and mental health reform.

She was also asked what is the hardest part of being an MP.

“The hardest part of being an MP is managing your time across two offices 200+ miles apart, with the unpredictability of events in the Westminster part of the week, and trying to carve out some of your own space within that for rest/reflection and time with loved ones,” she said.

Ms Nichols also discussed what she enjoys doing outside of politics.

She said: “Outside of politics, I enjoy walking (Warrington is very well located for the Sandstone Trail, Peak District and Lake District), swimming, and cooking – a full traditional Friday night dinner is my specialty.

“I try to get along to watch our local sports teams as much as I can in my free time too, particularly Warrington Wolves, Warrington Rylands and Woolston Rovers.”

Ms Nichols is the chair of the Centre for Evidence Based Drug Policy, a think tank.

Asked if she believes the UK needs a different approach to drugs, she said: “Yes, fundamentally drugs policy should be based on the best available evidence, and on the first principle of harm reduction.

“The work is primarily around supporting research into new treatments for mental health; the prescribing framework for medical cannabis following the legal changes in 2018; and reduction of opioid harms through how Naloxone is prescribed and distributed.

“Drugs policy is often put in the ‘too difficult’ box, but there are a number of areas in which we need to open up a sensible space for discussion of pragmatic reform that can better protect individuals and communities from the harms of illicit drugs, whilst also ensuring that with the right safeguards, the regulatory space allows for consideration of certain compounds that have potential benefits.”

She added: “This is an unremunerated role, and in effect a patron of the work they do.

“We began working together formally as our campaigning work in Parliament, particularly on novel mental health treatment, so often overlapped and this helped to build good relationships with their researchers.”