The New Year is often a time to reflect, to look back, and also to make resolutions for the year ahead. As I am often asked how MPs prioritise competing calls on their time, and given the time of year, I have looked back and I will give a brief overview and summary of the past 12 months. Of course, due to the pandemic Parliamentary working practices have been different from normal, but legislation still needs scrutiny and debate, decisions affecting the country and our area need to be made, and constituents rightly ask me questions and also for help.
Looking back, I have attended Parliament every week that it has been sitting, other than when I had to self-isolate due to covid. I have voted in person more often than almost any other MP, in over 200 different votes, ranging from strengthening the law around domestic abuse, to fishing rights, to improving air standards and biodiversity. I have also attended numerous sitting Fridays, where I have supported a number of Private Members’ Bills passing to the next stage, including careers guidance in schools; increased sentencing for people who abuse animals; and the Down Syndrome Bill to increase support for people with Down’s Syndrome.
As I have mentioned before, part of my role in Parliament involves looking at Bills in committee, and this year I have sat on 6 different Bill Committees, involving 33 sessions of evidence taking and line by line scrutiny. Again, this is something of a record! These have included bills concerning education, including the Freedom of Speech Bill, and Skills Bill, getting employers more involved in higher education.
In the constituency I have held almost 50 constituency surgeries, right across the constituency, and also by phone. It’s obviously not been as easy to see people in person this year, but I have undertaken as many visits as possible. This has included seeing a wide range of people, including schools, hospitals, vaccination centres, charities, businesses and individuals. I have been quizzed by schoolchildren and church groups, and had meetings with local councillors, the Clinical Commissioning Group and the Police & Crime Commissioner. If you run or work in a business or a charity, and you would like to highlight what you are doing, please do get in touch and invite me to come and see for myself!
On a more personal level, I have sent over 3000 letters to constituents, and over 2000 emails have been sent from my office. I have contacted nearly every government department with wide-ranging queries from constituents. But supporting constituents is not about numbers, or data. It’s about knowing that when someone gets in touch needing help with their visa, or getting through to the DVLA, or advice about travel rules, or needs information about school places, that my team and I will do everything to help. MPs don’t of course get issued with a magic wand, and change does not always happen quickly, but my excellent team and I do everything we can to assist when you get in touch. Where an issue is not within my gift or power, I do my best to help and point constituents in the right direction.
The last 18 months have challenged us all, but I am optimistic as we look forward to a new year ahead, with the brilliant vaccination rollout and the booster scheme, that the worst is behind us. As always, please do get in touch if you need help or support, or if you would like me to visit your business or charity.
