Last Saturday I was invited to speak about heritage and the arts at the Big Tent Ideas Festival in Cambridge, and was asked in particular about their role in the regeneration of Folkestone. The Festival, which was organised by my parliamentary colleague George Freeman, was a cross party event to bring people together to discuss […]
The first week of September marks the beginning of the new academic year, and for many pupils it will mean starting a new school. This is always a big moment, both for the students and their families. This week though, the 120, year seven pupils at the Turner Free School in Cheriton have the added […]
If you are a victim of crime, there are no statistics that will persuade you as to the safety of the area where you live. However, overall our Folkestone and Hythe district has a crime rate below the average for Kent and is the fourth lowest of the County’s twelve local authority areas; lower as […]
The collapse of the House of Fraser group, with its 59 department stores around the country, including in Maidstone and at the Bluewater shopping centre near Dartford, is about more than the failure of a business. Instead, it seems to signify another major step in the changing nature of our shopping habits and town centres. […]
I think the time has come to revisit the Prime Minister’s Lancaster House speech. Not Theresa May’s in 2017, setting out the UK’s negotiating objectives for leaving the European Union, but Margaret Thatcher’s in 1988, making the case to business leaders for Britain to join the Single Market. She explained to her audience that, “Europe […]
For the last ten years, Step Short, Folkestone’s First World War centenary charity, has worked to commemorate the sacrifices of all the men and women who were part of that terrible conflict, either on active service, or as vital support personnel. These acts of remembrance are important for every community in this country, but have […]
The government has presented its position paper for the next phase of the Brexit negotiations, and although this was agreed by the Cabinet at Chequers last Friday, it is still the subject of hot debate. However you voted in the referendum, and whatever your position on the current negotiations, I think that most people believe […]
Last Friday I met with my constituency neighbour, the MP for Hasting and Rye, Amber Rudd, and the Environment Agency, to discuss the Folkestone to Cliff End flood defence strategy. Over the last ten years over £130million has been invested in the coastal defences to protect the Romney Marsh area and the communities that live […]
This week the House of Commons voted overwhelmingly in favour of the expansion of Heathrow Airport, to create a third runway. This approval from parliament now makes it possible for the operators to come forward with detailed proposals to deliver this scheme. I voted in favour of this motion, believing that it will be good […]
On Monday, having worked alongside Gareth Thomas (former Welsh international rugby captain) and his campaign, I will present to the House of Commons a Bill that seeks to amend and extend the Football Offences Act 1991 to include homophobic abuse. In recent years, both Gareth and the Digital, Culture, Media and Sport Select Committee, which […]