Wishing you a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year
December 21, 2015
As another busy year in British politics winds down, I wanted to take this opportunity to wish you a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!
With festive songs already dominating the airwaves and the bright lights decorating our streets, I hope you are looking forward to Christmas as much as my children. Christmas, in my opinion, is best spent with family, enjoying good food and wine and of course watching the Downton Abbey Christmas Special! However, I do hope you will also join me in sparing a thought for those who are less fortunate than we are and who may be spending the festive period alone, as Christmas can also be a difficult time for many.
This year I have been leading the charge to improve rural broadband in the so-called ‘not spot’ areas. I am delighted that many communities, including Askham Bryan, Askham Richard and Acaster Malbis, look set to benefit from upgrades to superfast broadband in 2016, but I will continue to campaign to bridge the digital divide that still sadly exists in our most rural areas. Our councillors are working hard to bring common sense back to the Local Plan process and I look forward to seeing sustainable development proposals in the New Year. Decisions over the future of our historic city are never simple and I will continue to do everything I can to ensure local people have a say over our collective future.
In Parliament, I have been campaigning for fairer education funding for our area and I am delighted that the Chancellor has recently announced a new deal. It is high time that the formula is reviewed and York will no longer suffer from being one of the worst funded local education authorities in the country. A similar review into the national health funding formula is also ongoing and the results are expected to be announced soon. This is something I have been pushing for since I was first elected over five years ago. Whatever the outcome, I can assure you that I will continue to bang the drum until York residents are guaranteed their fair share of NHS funding.
As ever, please do not hesitate to get in touch if you have any concerns or queries. In the meantime, I wish you and your family a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.
