Our parliamentary select committees need to be taken seriously. Yet, for them to be so, we need to clarify their legal powers, use wider expertise and practice what we preach. Select committees have recently been in the spotlight, and Parliament’s liaison committee — made up of the chairs of all the select committees — has …
Read More →Aircraft carriers without aircraft, leaked letters from officials, and efficiency programmes that cost more than they save are just 3 examples of why it sometimes feels in Parliament like I am in a real life version of the comedy ‘Yes Minister’. But it is real money being wasted. Money that is hard earned in North …
Read More →Some weeks feel like little progress is being made, and then a number of announcements come all at once. Royal Mail confirmed the Chatteris sorting office will remain open for the foreseeable future, announcing a U-turn from their previous plans. Thanks go to all the residents who signed the petition, Chatteris Town Council and the …
Read More →One of the aims of this Government is to have greater transparency on information so the public are better able to have their say. A great new tool is the National Crime Maps which has received 45 million visits so far. Visit www.police.uk and type in your postcode to find out more. Also on law …
Read More →As the first of my 2012 columns may I start by wishing you a Happy New Year. I am sure that I am not the only one who needs some time in the gym following the excesses of Christmas, and am looking forward to getting back to work in Parliament and here in North East …
Read More →The most important event this month was the honour of lying wreaths on Remembrance Day. This year I attended acts of remembrance in March and Whittlesey on Remembrance Sunday, and a Royal British Legion concert in Chatteris the evening before. I would like to thank everyone involved in these deeply moving occasions. I was pleased …
Read More →Local businesses often receive little flexibility from the taxman. So you might be surprised to learn that Vodafone was given five years to settle its bills, whilst Goldman Sachs was let off tax on its bank bonuses following a private supper with the country’s top tax official. I have been working with colleagues on the …
Read More →Do you think public money is spent wisely? Parliament spends a lot of time debating the total amount of money to be spent but far less time scrutinising how effectively it has been spent. The Public Accounts Committee looks in a limited way at issues of value for money but, after a year as a …
Read More →Parliament this month has been dominated by media stories about the illegal activity of journalists, yet in practice my time has been spent on schools, transport, and grants. I did however take the opportunity to question the Prime Minister over one aspect of the hacking scandal. When I was elected I set myself the aim …
Read More →I thought this month, rather than my usual update on my activities, I would share a few observations on my first year in Parliament. The first thing that hits you as a new MP is your mailbag. It comes before you even get an office and has not slowed throughout the year. Two large mailbags …
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