My party leader has rightly pledged to put party politics aside for the common good in order to work together to get through what is turning out to be a major immediate economic crisis.

That said, we will no doubt return to Gordon Brown's dubious record as Chancellor and his hollow boasts of "no more return to boom and bust", his gold sales, massaging of official statistics, failed regulation and historic levels of public and private indebtedness.

Gordon Brown a safe pair of hands? I'm far from convinced, but the British people will have the final say on these matters.

In the meantime, we should remember that these stock market rollercoaster rides are almost always about confidence – at least in the short term – and that long term we need to count our blessings and consider why Peterborough is as well placed as ever to beat the credit crunch and associated downturn.

Lots of people want to come and live and work in our area.

We are a good transport hub, with excellent north-south links by road and rail. Our plans for the regeneration of the city centre are bold and ambitious and will reach a milestone before Christmas with the planning permission for the North Westgate retail development being submitted to the council. We have some of the best schools in England – such as Werrington Primary School and the King's School in my constituency.

We still retain a strong base in engineering and manufacturing (albeit not like the glory days of 10,000 people employed at Perkins in the '70s), while diversifying into the service sector.

In terms of quality of life, we have plenty of pleasant open spaces, and are an Environment City with a burgeoning environment employment sector which will see the building of a carbon challenge town in the next few years.

Generally, we have excellent health facilities and a thriving charity and voluntary sector. Peterborough welcomes a new multi-campus university centre next year, so that our children need not leave forever at 18, but stay and make a big contribution to their home town. We have strong local political leadership, low taxes, good services and stability.

There's no doubt that life will be a bit tougher for families and business over the next few years. But our city's resilience, ambition and capacity for change and willingness to adapt through thick and thin will see us through, as it has before.

Stewart Jackson

MP for Peterborough