Thank you.
Firstly, thank you for the incredible amount of support and messages so many of you have sent me about the results. I’m sorry I’ve not had the time to reply to each of you – it's been a whirlwind.
My attention is now focused on getting on with the hard work that lies in front of me. I am now getting set up in Westminster, as the work begins to induct me into Parliament as your new MP for Suffolk Coastal.
I am determined to hit the ground running, and I want to get to work as soon as I can. There is so much that I want to do, to represent the people of Suffolk Coastal, and tackle some of the big issues that we are all facing.
I will be setting up a full time, fully staffed office here in the constituency, in Felixstowe – as well as a parliamentary office in Westminster .Like any new role, it will take some time to set up this new office, recruit the team to help me, and get everything in place to be able to deliver for the people of Suffolk Coastal. I am working on it as we speak, and making sure that we get everything in place as soon as we can.
I will continue to action case work and issues over the coming weeks, whilst I recruit my team. Please email my new parliamentary email address Jenny.riddellcarpenter.mp@parliament.uk
Finally, thank you to everyone who voted for change on 4th July, and I remain grateful for the thousands of you who voted Labour for the first time in your life, or lent me your vote.
But, however you voted, I will be the MP that represents all of Suffolk Coastal, and puts the needs of the constituency first, every day.
Thank you.
Jenny Riddell-Carpenter
Member of Parliament, Suffolk Coastal
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My priorities for Suffolk Coastal
Over the course of the past few months, I've spoken to make of you about my priorities for Suffolk Coastal. Over the next few months, I'll be working to make sure my following five priorities deliver for the people of Suffolk Coastal.
Of course, these will not be my only focus, and I will work hard to be a champion of the wider range of issues facing Suffolk Coastal, in the months and years ahead.
1. Championing improvements and reform for adult social care. Suffolk has a disproportionate rate of dementia - one of the highest rates of dementia across the country - because we have an older population than average - as people move here to retire, and young people often move away. I’ll be fighting for reform to improve our care system and provide better support for families trying to access care. Please drop me an email if you would like to be involved in this, or to stay up to date with my work on adult social care.
2. Special educational needs (SEND). Again, Suffolk is failing too many families and young students. The Council is failing to deliver its legal duties to support students with SEND needs. I am getting to work straight away to make sure we can deliver real improvements to children and young students with SEND needs, and that we have a strong voice fighting for families in parliament. Please drop me an email if you would like to be involved in my work on this.
3. Protecting our natural environment. Our rivers and seas have been polluted whilst the government voted to relax laws for sewage discharge amongst the water companies. I’m a member of Labour’s Environment campaign (SERA) and will continue to campaign to clean up our rivers and seas, and protect against sewage dumping . Read more here about the wider work I will be doing on local energy projects here.
4. Cutting NHS waiting times, and tackling the dentistry crisis in Suffolk. The Labour Government is determined to put patients first, cutting waiting times and tackling the GP and dental crisis here in Suffolk, and across the country. I’ll be working with the Labour Government to make sure Suffolk benefits from this investment programme.
5. Bringing better transport and infrastructure to Suffolk. I will be working with will leaders across the county to fix our broken transport system, mend our crumbling roads, and restore bus services to the rural towns and villages that have seen services disappear.
