Since my last update, the UK Government has unveiled new measures to cut tax and help people into work at the Autumn Statement. More on this, and the £29.5 billion of inward investment the Prime Minister secured this week, below.
In the House of Commons, I have spoken in debates on a range of topics since my last update. Yesterday, I welcomed the reduction in National Insurance, which will save the typical Esher and Walton constituent £589 per year. Remarkably - no Liberal Democrat MPs turned up to the debate on National Insurance. You can read more below.
In the constituency, I marked Parliament Week with residents of Adelaide Care Home, made progress in securing road safety improvements outside Ashley School, and welcomed £82 million of funding to improve roads in Surrey.
As ever, if you are a constituent in need of my assistance, please get in touch at the contact details below.
Yours sincerely,
Dominic
In this week's update
An extra £82.4 million to improve roads in Surrey
Improving road safety outside Ashley School in Walton
Marking Parliament Week at Adelaide House in Walton
Picking the winning Christmas Card Competition entry
Westminster Watch - A roundup of my recent contributions in the House of Commons.
State of the Nation - An overview of the national policy picture and recent government announcements.
An extra £82.4 million to improve roads in Surrey
Under Our Plan for Esher and Walton constituency, we have already had success in getting roads like Walton Road and Dennis Road in Molesey resurfaced, but there is still more to do.
So, it is great news that this Conservative government has given Surrey County Council an extra £82.4 million to improve roads across the county. This funding will be used across Surrey to maintain and resurface even more of our roads over the next 10 years, and is in addition to the funding the Council was expecting to receive over the next decade.
Improving road safety outside Ashley School in Walton
Thank you to Surrey County Council and Surrey Police for meeting with me and local parent, Julia Charlton, to assess road safety outside Ashley Primary School in Walton.
Ashley School is located on a busy junction making it difficult for families to safely cross the road as they travel to and from school. We would like to see a safe permanent crossing, amongst other measures, to help make the journey to and from school safer.
I will be following up with Surrey County Council to make sure local families start to see some improvements at this busy junction.
Marking Parliament Week at Adelaide House in Walton
I enjoyed marking Parliament Week with residents and staff at Adelaide House, answering questions about the role of being an MP and what the government is doing to support the social care sector, which is still subject to some Covid restrictions.
Parliament Week is a great way to engage with the local community – from school pupils to care home residents – about what Parliament does, why it matters, and how everyone can get involved.
Thank you to the team at Adelaide House for a very warm welcome!
Picking the winning Christmas Card Competition entry
Thank you to all the pupils across Esher and Walton constituency who took the time to enter my Christmas Card Competition this year.
Lots of festive and creative pieces of artwork were entered into the competition making it very difficult to pick the winning design!
A winner and two runners up will see their artwork feature on my 2023 Christmas card, which will be sent out across our local area and beyond over the festive period.
The winners will be contacted and announced soon!
Westminster Watch
30 November: I spoke in the National Insurance Contributions (Reduction in Rates) Bill. This reduction will be worth an average of £589 per year for Esher and Walton constituents.
28 November: During Energy and Net Zero Questions, I asked what fiscal and regulatory measures the government is taking to speed up the transition to low carbon fuels across the UK economy.
21 November: At FCDO Questions, I welcomed the UK's International Development White Paper, with a particular focus on the use of Official Development Assistance (ODA) to leverage private sector investment to boost funding for climate finance, mitigation and adaptation.
State of the Nation
What people across Esher and Walton constituency need to know about this month's Autumn Statement:
From January, Employee National Insurance Contributions will drop from 12% to 10% - a tax cut of £450 for the average worker earning £35,400;
National Living Wage is set to rise to £11.44 from April 2024 and will be extended to those aged 21 and over for the first time;
We’re backing our high streets by extending 75% business rate relief for retail, hospitality and leisure until 2025;
The Pensions Triple Lock and Pension Credit will be protected and rise in April 2024 by 8.5%;
Housing support for low-income renters will be increased by raising the Local Housing Allowance for 75,000 families in the South East;
Working age benefits will rise by the rate of inflation at 6.7% from April 2024 to support families during these challenging economic times;
Alcohol duty will be frozen until August 2024, taking 3p off the duty cost of an average pint of beer. This move will save pubs and our alcohol sector thousands in funds that they’ll be able to reinvest into their businesses.
Also this month: The UK Prime Minister secured £29.5 billion in inward investment into the UK at the Global Investment Summit, creating thousands of jobs across the UK in our most innovative sectors, including tech, life sciences, renewables, housing and infrastructure.
