Alan Milburn took part in a Commons debate on social mobility and fair access to the professions. The debate focussed on the work of the independent Panel on Fair Access to the Professions, led by Mr Milburn, which is looking at what the barriers to fair access to senior jobs were and what the professions and the Government could do to improve fair access for all.

In his speech, Mr Milburn said "It's not that young people don't have aspirations, it's that they are blocked. It's not that the country doesn't have talent. To coin a phrase, Britain's got talent - it's got lots of talent. The issue is how we unleash it."

Mr Milburn said his Panel would make a number of suggestions about careers advice, internships and recruitment to ensure that people were given a fair chance to reach their goals.

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Alan Milburn MP has said he would be seeking a debate in Parliament on getting seatbelts fitted to lorries. 

His constituent Peter Williams was tragically killed when the 1995 Calor Gas lorry he was driving crashed in Wolsingham. The lorry was not fitted with seatbelts.  Since then Mr Milburn has been working closely with the Williams family who have collected a 1,275-strong petition urging lorry-owners to fit seatbelts.

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Darlington Fire Station's new Community Safety Centre was officially opened by the Rt Hon Alan Milburn MP.

The County Durham and Darlington Fire Authority has invested over £340,000 in the new community safety facilities at the fire station in the centre of Darlington.

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UPDATE: new results added

My survey has now been sent out to another 8,000 households across Darlington and I'm pleased to share the early findings with you. I’ll be updating these as more surveys are returned and completed online and adding some analysis and comments too.

I created the survey to find out what you think about Darlington and its future. While it's important for me to tell you what I’ve been doing on your behalf, it is just as important for me to hear what you think about the needs of our community. So please do take a couple of minutes to fill it in.

I will continue to update the website over the next few months with the latest results.

I hope this site makes it easier for you to keep track of my work as Darlington’s MP. There will be information about where I’ve been in Darlington and what I’ve been doing. I’ll be writing or recording a blog regularly. And I’ll be responding to some of the views you post. The site will be frequently updated so it’s worth checking back on what’s new.

I think it’s very important not just for me to let people know what I’ve been doing in the town and in Westminster - but also to listen to what Darlington voters have to say. Modern politics, it seems to me, should be a two-way process where there is more dialogue and less monologue. So I hope you will use the site to voice your views as well as checking on mine!

I hope you find it helpful.