These covered his work as the Member of Parliament for Chelsea & Fulham as well as his Ministerial work as Minister for Trade Policy and Minister for London.
My week has been a busy and varied one. Next to my Ministerial visits and meetings and engagements in the House of Commons, I have been out and about in the constituency, working hard for local residents. I thoroughly enjoyed my visit to Partridges on Duke of York Square to meet the owner - a real treat! I also went on patrol with senior officers from the Metropolitan Police in Bishops Park and south Fulham to discuss recent resident concerns - more on this below.
Having returned from the World Trade Organisation's 13th ministerial conference, it was straight back to constituency business for me this week. I spoke to our local Met Police officers in Fulham about recent crime incidences and went on to meet residents in Munster ward.
I am writing to you today about the new rules governing overseas electors. From now on, British citizens living abroad will (in almost all cases) be able to vote in UK parliamentary elections. Previously, this right ended after 15 years living outside the UK. This meant that hundreds of thousands of Britons abroad were often unable to vote in either their country of residence or in the UK.
Recently, I met up with Education Secretary Gillian Keegan to discuss education and schools in Chelsea & Fulham. We also talked about Labour's un-costed and short-sighted plans to introduce a new 20% tax on parents of children attending independent schools. This would have a significant impact on ALL children's education.
The issue of women’s safety in South Fulham has continued to be a priority for me this week. We need to get Labour-run LBHF council to listen to these very real concerns and I have therefore now started a petition, calling on LBHF to suspend the SW6 Traffic Schemes until the concerns have been addressed.
After returning from a packed Trade visit to Jersey and Guernsey, I have been out and about across Chelsea and Fulham, meeting residents on the doorstep together with fantastic teams of local Conservatives. My local work and campaigns received a very good response from constituents across the local area and I was able to share a useful update on recent crime with residents, too.
If you enjoy reading my weekly news bulletin and learning about what I have been up to as your Member of Parliament, then you should give my Facebook page and Instagram a follow, too. Follow to see my day-to-day activity in Chelsea & Fulham, Westminster and abroad on trips as Minister for Trade.
It has been a busy week for me in the constituency and Westminster. I have taken swift action in response to recent crime incidents in Bishops Park and nearby, and telephoned the Met Police Borough Commander, who has responded well. Police numbers are on an all time high under the Conservative Government and the Borough Commander has promised action with more proactive policing.
Today, you are reading the 700th edition of my e-newsletter to residents of Chelsea & Fulham! Regular readers will know that I am reporting back every week on what I have been up to in the constituency and in Westminster. For 20 years now, ever since I became your candidate for Parliament, I have been sending out this bulletin almost every week.
I hope you had a wonderful Christmas and I wish you a very happy New Year! The arrival of the new year is a time for optimism, and I am excited for the year ahead. I will continue working hard for all Chelsea and Fulham residents and I look forward to further improving our fantastic local area. I have a track record of delivery and promise of more in 2024! I look forward to hearing from you over the next year or seeing you across Chelsea and Fulham.
