It has been a bitter-sweet return to parliament. I am delighted to get back to work to continue to serve the people of Bedford and Kempston but I’m sad to see so many tremendous and hard-working colleagues lose their seats.
There is a strong field of candidates for the Labour Leadership, all of whom would have brought their own talents and energy to the role but for me, Keir Starmer is the outstanding candidate and is the right person to take the Labour Party into the next decade.
It is clear that Labour needs to listen to communities across the country and learn serious lessons following the General Election result. I believe Keir Starmer can bring the leadership necessary to rebuild trust and establish Labour as a united force for good so we can win the next election and deliver the credible and radical change needed to tackle the profound injustices and inequality in our economy and society.
My priorities for Bedford for the next five years will be fighting for funding for Bedford Hospital and improving health and social care provision; supporting Bedfordshire Police to make our town a safer place; and fighting to improve Bedford’s rail services.
In Parliament, I will focus on getting the best Brexit we can which protects workers’ rights, food standards, citizens’ rights and environmental protections. I will do all I can to pressurise the Government on improving and accelerating their very weak plans to tackle the global warming crisis.
I made the following representation recorded on the Hansard:
I met with Rail Minister, Chris Heaton Harris to discuss ongoing issues with Bedford rail, and a breakdown of the key discussion points at the meeting will soon be published on my website.