North Wiltshire MP James Gray has called on local schools to take part in My Money Week (3 to 9 June), giving pupils the chance to learn more about money and personal finance. 

“I strongly encourage all primary and secondary schools across North Wiltshire to take part in this fantastic event. There has never been a better time to take steps locally to ensure that young people are given every opportunity to improve their financial skills, knowledge and confidence.” said Mr Gray.

“I am delighted to support the new partnership between pfeg (Personal Finance Education Group) and Barclayes, which means that My Money Week can return for its fifth year, and I urge teachers from across Wiltshire to pre-order their free My Money Week Activity Packs at www.pfeg.org/mymoneyweek”

Tracey Bleakley, Chief Executive of pfeg said: “We are absolutely delighted to have the support of James Gray MP in promoting My Money Week this year, and I hope all schools in North Wiltshire will seize the opportunity to take part through our free activity pack, advice and support.”

My Money Week 2013 will also raise awareness of Barclays’ flagship UK community programme, Barclays Money Skills, and provide opportunities for Barclays employees to share their financial expertise and skills with young people in teacher-led My Money Week activities in local schools.  In addition, this year will see extra resources targeted towards disadvantaged young people in both the school environment and the wider community.

Ashok Vaswani, CEO UK and Retail Business Banking at Barclays, said:  “It has never been more important for young people, particularly those who are vulnerable, to be able to access the support they need to learn about money. Having sound financial skills and being confident in managing money is critical to everyday living and achieving future goals.”

Since the first My Money Week in 2009, more than three million young people have been helped to understand more about money and personal finance through focused activities in schools.  In 2012 around 500,000 young people took part in My Money Week activities, with 99 per cent of teachers reporting an increase in skills and knowledge, and 91 per cent of teachers reporting a shift in students’ attitudes towards money.

So the Rouge Dragon Pursuivant has hung up his playing card outfit, the Cap of Maintenance is packed away in its moth-free box; the Guards are back on guard, their ladyships’ tiaras secure in the bank vault, and the ermine duly returned to Moss Bros. The State Opening of Parliament is over for another year, and legislators in Lords and Commons can get about their more mundane legislative duties. I personally love the flummery, the history, the pageantry. It’s what makes us British, and we are extremely good at it. Everyone knows about Black Rod having the door slammed in his face to symbolise the supremacy and independence of the elected House of Commons. It may sound silly; but it has important symbolism in the balance of our ancient constitution.

The Gracious Speech itself, of course, is written not by Her Majesty, but by some pretty dry civil servants. And it sounds like it. Why can’t they at least try to draft it in slightly more Monarchical language? It did seem to me pretty thin this year – fifteen worthy but unexciting Bills for us to mull over for 12 months. I personally will be taking a keen interest in the Defence Bill, which amongst other things will try to make the Reserves fit to be deployed in Theatre of War. But otherwise, three years into the Parliament, we have carried out the biggest and most radical of our plans, and suppose we are moving towards a bit of tidying up before the next General Election.

The real story has been about what was NOT in the Speech- namely a Bill to legislate for an In/Out Referendum on our membership of the EU. I was one of the first Tory rebels to sign up to an amendment decrying that omission, the outcome of the vote on which you will know by the time you read this.

David Cameron has promised an In/Out Referendum in 2017. But who knows what events or changes may intervene in the meantime. He plans a fundamental renegotiation of our membership of the EU, but what if he fails to achieve it? He will hardly want to go to the country with some kind of a limp rag of a failed renegotiation, and most of us recognise that it’s pretty unlikely that he will genuinely be able to achieve a fundamental change to the architecture of the European behemoth. So let’s have an Act of Parliament which will guarantee such a referendum. It will shoot UKIP’s fox; it will give the voters some real red meat for the 2015 General Election; and it will flush out Labour and the Lib Dems, who will, we imagine, vote against any such proposal.

These are very big issues – potentially affecting the way we are governed for generations to come. Thanks only to a rock-solid Constitution such as ours, symbolised by the Imperial State Crown and the like, can we contemplate such a fundamental re-alignment. In other countries round the world it would take a revolution. Here we do it by slamming a door in a retired general’s face.