When we were children, people of my generation really did say “let’s all meet up in the year 2000”. Then it seemed so far in the future, now well in the past.

That moment of the turn of the millennium was something unique; it felt truly special. The ‘Y2K bug’ that had had every IT department in overdrive came to little; people enjoyed the fireworks and sense of hope.

Then in what seemed like no time, every organisation had worked up a strategy that was dubbed ‘Vision 2020’. But the actual 2020 was not the experience anyone had envisioned: it was the year the Covid pandemic hit.

Now, 2025. Again, we have a year with an auspicious-sounding ring to it. The end of the first quarter of the 21st century.

Generation Beta will be growing into a world that remains unpredictable. Where once, after the fall of the Berlin Wall, we used to talk of peace and a corners being turned, now Western nations are facing a wider range of threats and issues than ever.

In 2025, eyes will be firmly fixed on Syria, with both hope and trepidation. We hope and pray for peace for Ukraine; it must be a just peace. And in the middle east there must be a renewed drive towards a two-state solution.

In the West, we will soon see the second inauguration of President Trump.

Something that worries me is the apparent attractiveness to some, not just in the US but other countries too, of tariffs and other trade barriers. I predict that international trade will be a big theme in 2025, and we will hear the phrase “comparative advantage” more in our news bulletins.

At home, we are facing the effects of the budget throughout the economy. I will continue to oppose policies that hit our farmers and small businesses, which are the bedrock of East Hampshire’s local economy; we will hold the government to account on recompensing public service providers for costs.

Locally, two big developments will be the government’s proposed new, considerably higher, housing and the proposed re-organisation of local government. I hope we will get firm news soon on the new Basingstoke hospital, and there will be an important debate about the proposed development(s) for Havant Thicket reservoir.

It should be a big year for technology. The fruits of research and development on battery technologies can underpin further decarbonisation. This could also be the moment that AI’s potential is mainstreamed.

Here, the Online Safety Act, on which I worked in different roles, comes into force; in America they may ban TikTok; and many countries will be watching what happens in Australia with their restriction on children accessing social media.

One way and another, 2025 looks indeed set to be a highly significant year.