As my first year as your MP comes rapidly to a close I have been reflecting on what has been the most intense and exhausting year of my existence so far. I certainly didn’t imagine that life as an MP would be easy, quite the reverse, but nothing had prepared me for the avalanche of issues, problems, letters and emails that descend upon you from the moment you are declared the election winner. In amongst the deluge, I have tried hard to focus on two things.
First, you, my constituents whose day-to-day battles with bureaucracy form a large part of my daily life. We have certainly had a number of victories large and small, including the cancellation of the Bullington Cross wind farm. I hope there will be more to come. I have worked to raise the profile of issues that are important here and bring people together to make plans on dementia, youth suicide and education by holding “summits” on all three. I have also tried to be useful with public information meetings on broadband (which was packed) and auto-enrolment pensions for small business. There is more to come with two meetings organized on the EU referendum before that momentous decision (tickets available on my website at www.kitmalthouse.com).
Secondly I have worked hard to understand and play my part in the debates over the very serious problems we face at home and abroad. From the crisis in Syria and defence spending, to dealing with the deficit and getting the NHS and economy right, passionate debate has raged around the House of Commons, and not just in public. It often surprises people to know that a lot more debate and business takes place in the tearoom and lobbies of the House of Commons than on the floor of the chamber. Issues are aired, voices are raised and alliances built more often over a cup of tea than across the green benches.
But the greatest delight of the last year has been the huge number of people who have shaken my hand. Any number of constituents and school groups have visited Westminster and in turn I have visited dozens of businesses, charities and schools across the patch, always learning and where I can, helping. And then of course there are the fetes. Across the 230 square miles of North West Hampshire there are dozens of fetes and fayres and we managed to get to most over the summer – I became a dead-eye at the coconut shy, my kids overdosed on ice cream, and everywhere we went people were kind and welcoming. So I thank you for helping to make my first year so rewarding and I hope productive for this lovely constituency.