Prime Minister Rishi Sunak was in Leeds on November 23, where he promised to “back the incredible people” of the city.
He faced questions about a planned mass transit system in the region, as well as economic growth in the city, after a tour of Sunny Bank Mills in Farsley.
Stuart Andrew MP, who represents the Pudsey seat, and Emma White, a jeweller based at the mill complex and a finalist on the BBC's All That Glitters, spoke to Mr Sunak during the visit.
He faced questions about a planned mass transit system in the region, as well as economic growth in the city, after a tour of Sunny Bank Mills in Farsley.
Stuart Andrew MP, who represents the Pudsey seat, and Emma White, a jeweller based at the mill complex and a finalist on the BBC's All That Glitters, spoke to Mr Sunak during the visit.
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NewsTranscript
00:00 Hi, I'm James, I'm a reporter from the Yorkshire Evening Post and I'm here at Sunnybank Mills
00:09 in Farsley where the Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has been speaking to local business
00:13 owners. His team wouldn't allow people to take pictures and videos but he did allow
00:17 a number of questions from the press. One of those was about the mass transit system
00:21 in West Yorkshire that's been promised for the region. He was asked when it would happen
00:25 and if it would be fully funded. He promised that there would be significantly more funding
00:29 for mass transit as a result of the decision made to axe HS2. When pushed on a date he
00:34 said that conversations were ongoing with the Department for Transport and local authorities
00:39 in the region. The Prime Minister was also asked what plans there were to continue economic
00:43 growth in Leeds and he referred back to the mass transit system and said that it was critical
00:47 that it should be delivered. He also spoke about devolution and making sure that local
00:52 people were at the forefront of decisions being made in the city. Today I've also been
00:56 speaking to Stuart Andrew, the MP for the area and some of the local business owners.
01:02 So what has happened today at Sunnybank Mills? So I've been talking about how great Sunnybank
01:07 Mills is to the Prime Minister and the fact that there's a range of businesses here and
01:11 how that really sort of helps to keep the town centre thriving and he was keen to see
01:16 it and particularly come and talk to small businesses the day after the autumn statement
01:22 because he wanted to hear how that might help them and benefit them and also to learn about
01:27 perhaps other issues that businesses are facing because growing the economy is one of his
01:31 key priorities. And do you think the Prime Minister was impressed by what he saw today
01:35 at Sunnybank Mills? I think he was impressed beyond even my expectations because he kept
01:41 talking as he was going round wanting to go into, he could have spent the whole day here
01:46 to be honest with you. He was really impressed with the range of businesses that are here.
01:50 He was certainly impressed by one of the restaurants where he was desperate to stop and have some
01:55 food but I think this has been great for him to see the real innovative approach that they've
02:01 taken here and the impact it has on this town. It's really important.
02:13 So the Prime Minister's been to Sunnybank Mills today and you were one of the people
02:16 he came to visit. What was that like for you? It was interesting. I was interested to meet
02:22 him. I am quite politically minded so yeah, it was an experience. Were you nervous at
02:28 all or what was going through your mind? I was, I was really nervous but we've had politicians
02:35 in here before so we had a visit from Rachel Reeve last year as well so I always think
02:40 it's good to have an open door policy. And what was it that you spoke to him about? We
02:44 spoke mainly about jewellery so I got him hammering out a star and then texturing it
02:51 and he made a little Christmas decoration. Fantastic. And how significant do you think
02:55 it is that the Prime Minister might visit somewhere like Sunnybank Mills? I think it's
02:59 very interesting. We're a key state so what happens here is usually very indicative of
03:06 what's going to happen elsewhere in the country so I think it will be interesting to see what
03:10 happens in the next general election.