As a new Member of Parliament, this is the first opportunity I have had to explore the palace of Westminster and see for myself how British politics is steeped in tradition. It has been, however, a week that was perhaps lighter on the traditional politics than many of us were expecting. On the Monday evening following the election, I was with my new colleagues from the Parliamentary Conservative Party in one of the many committee rooms in the House, where David Cameron addressed the Party on how the coalition talks were developing. At this point, very few of us had any real idea about whether we would be in Government or not at the end of the week. On Tuesday evening we once again met as a party following a second day of negotiations – and this time Patrick McLoughlin, our Chief Whip was able to introduce David Cameron not as Leader of the Conservative Party, but as Prime Minister, to much cheering from the room! The mood in the room was optimistic, but extremely difficult times are ahead of us and hard decisions will have to be made. Britain now has a Government that is committed to making those decisions and guiding our country through to a better future.
As a new Member, I am having to learn about the many different roles and expectations that come with working in the House of Commons, such as where the Government and the Opposition sit on the green benches or how Parliamentary Questions can be tabled. This is an exciting opportunity and a brilliant moment for our politics and I would once again like to thank the people of Rugby for giving me this opportunity.
All of us, as Members of Parliament, must remember that we should be serving the people of our local area, who elected us and so I will say to the people of Rugby that if they wish to speak to me about any issues then they should take the opportunity to contact me as my first responsibility must be to represent you – the people of Rugby.