It is a pleasure to be invited to write what I hope is the first of many contributions for NEMM, and it is a huge privilege to have been elected as your MP for the new Melton and Syston constituency.
Its an area I know well, living locally in the constituency with my wife, representing the Syston and Thurmaston part of the constituency as an MP since 2015, and having known Melton and the villages well for over 20 years.
While, in recent years, much has been achieved locally, there remains a lot to do, and I have been hitting the ground running in the past few weeks since the election, getting to work on many of the key priorities for our area I highlighted during the campaign - tackling road safety issues on the A52; working with local communities to make progress on addressing flooding; supporting our farmers and rural communities; working with the local NHS on my plan to see more NHS services provided locally at Melton's Hospital, and to press for a realistic plan for the delivery of Melton's much needed second GP surgery; as well as seeking to work with County Hall and MBC to find a way forward that will see the Melton Mowbray by-pass southern leg delivered.
These are among my key priorities for Melton & the villages - its not an exhaustive list, and as your MP I'll always work to deliver for the community, and respond to emerging issues, as I am currently doing, for example, in meeting with SMB College Group in the coming days, but its important that I, working with others across the community, keep a clear focus on the key things we need to see making progress that will make a real difference for Melton, the villages, and all who live and work in them.
Edward Argar MP pictured in Melton Market Place. Photo: Office of Edward Argar MP.
Not only is this fantastic constituency huge geographically, but it consists of not far short of one hundred different towns and villages, each with their own character and their own local issues.
During the election period itself I personally campaigned in every village or town in the seat, and in the weeks since the election I have already been hard at work, visible, out and about, and engaging on key local issues at public events and local meetings in different corners of the patch: - attending the Somerby Village Fete; asking questions in Parliament about the A52 junctions near Bottesford and pressing the Chief Executive of National Highways to meet to discuss the need for important safety improvements there; meeting with members of the local community in Burton Lazars to discuss the impact of the MMDR roadworks; attending the fantastic Melton PieFest to support local businesses there; meeting the President of the NFU in Parliament and discussing pressures locally on farmers; joining members of the Friends of the Village Hall in Goadby Marwood to support their plans to raise funds to restore and improve the village hall; inviting Environment Agency directors to a ‘Floods Summit’ in the constituency; and tabling questions to Ministers in Parliament about the local impact on pensioners of the Government’s cuts to eligibility for the pensioners Winter Fuel Allowance.
This is just a flavour of the variety of local issues that I have already been engaging with, and of course doing so working with local councillors.
Edward in Thorpe Arnold during campaigning for the 2024 UK General Election. Photo: Melton & Syston Conservatives
These sort of events, across the patch, helping make me as the local MP visible and accessible, are the most important way of making myself available to you. Of course regular columns in the Melton Times; responding to the already many hundreds of emails and correspondence about casework and other issues each week; regularly writing for village and local newsletters as I did in my previous seat; providing updates for NEMM and for other local media, they all play their part, but it is being out and about that is most important.
And as for every MP, it is being a constituency MP that is the focus. As Alicia Kearns showed when Chairman of a Select Committee in recent years, requiring her to be abroad for significant periods of time, it was always the constituency that came first. The same is true for any MP with a select committee or front-bench role - it is always the local constituency that you prioritise, and both roles can be done well, together.
This summer a key focus will be redesigning and refreshing my online presence and website, and seeking to get an e-newsletter up and running, although data protection rules mean I cannot simply take over Alicia's subscriber list and people will have to resubscribe afresh to mine when its up and running, but I'll let NEMM readers know in due course when and how they will be able to do that. Alongside that, while social media has many strengths, it can also have many negative impacts, so I'll be seeking to utilise the social media approach that best supports effective communication, while mitigating against the chilling effect that social media can on occasion have on open, respectful, debate.
More broadly, I will always seek to make myself available to help constituents who need my assistance, and we are in the process of serving out notice on my current constituency casework office, meaning my team will be moving into the Melton Office in the coming months, providing an accessible presence in the town. It is a privilege to serve the whole community, as your MP, irrespective of how you voted, and I look forward to doing so in the coming months and years.
With the NEMM's permission, I very much looking forward to contributing further updates here in the future, but in the meantime, if you know of a community event in your area that you'd like to invite me to as the local MP, or an organisation you'd like me to visit, or if you just feel that as your local MP I can be of assistance to you, please do either write to me at: Rt. Hon Edward Argar MP, House of Commons, London SW1A 0AA, or email me at edward.argar.mp@parliament.uk
Editors Note: NEMM has confirmed with Edward that we'd very much welcome more articles in the future and look forward to sharing these with our readers.
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