I am both humbled and honoured to have been re-elected to serve you as your MP in East Surrey, particularly considering the national results. Thank you so much to everyone who voted for me to continue to represent our beautiful part of the world.
I must pay tribute to the polling station and counting staff, my campaign team, and to everyone who supported me locally come rain (of which there was quite a lot) or shine.
Overall, the Labour Party have won the right to govern. These are challenging times for the country and I wish them well. However, it is not the case that people found Labour a better option than in 2019. The result instead reflects that the Conservative Party lost many of our voters.
We must now do everything we can to rebuild that trust. It has been an unprecedented few years for the country. However, I do believe there is a majority of people who want to see small c conservative principles and common sense prevail. We must rebuild the party to give those people a strong voice in Parliament. As Keith Joseph said, we must now seek the common ground, not the centre ground, and we must fulfil our new role as His Majesty’s Most Loyal Opposition with grace and dedication.
In this new Parliament, I will shadow my previous role of Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero. An effective opposition plays a core role in our parliamentary democracy. We will not oppose for the sake of it, but I believe that when we disagree, it is our responsibility to say so – especially when it comes to securing enough cheap energy to keep the lights on in this country. I am deeply concerned about this Government’s approach to energy policy – an ideological pursuit of targets that no other country is aiming for – will push up energy bills and be worse for global climate emissions.
Already, we have seen the new Government take steps which are not in the interests of our community. In the King’s Speech, announced a new Planning Bill which is widely reported to remove the right of local communities to reject housing developments when they don’t think they are right for their neighbourhood. I know many of you will be worried about what this means for our area.
We absolutely need affordable homes for local families and key workers including teachers and nurses, but forcing through new developments without a proper role for residents to question local infrastructure, traffic or access to green spaces or public services is not the answer.
I’m going to be meeting Tandridge District Council to discuss what these plans mean for our area, and how we can provide constructive opposition to ensure that we get the affordable homes we need, while managing infrastructure pressures and protecting our green spaces.
If you feel strongly about this issue, I’ve launched a survey for you to tell me how more building on the green belt will affect you. You can find it on my website.
It is an honour to be able to continue to serve the residents of East Surrey. I am very grateful to be given the chance to continue my work locally and in Parliament, and to represent this wonderful seat for another term.
