Although Parliament is not sitting now until the first week of September, I am still very busy during Recess. Since I was elected in May, I have had to spend Monday-Thursday every week staying in London, because of the pressure of work in Parliament. On Friday mornings I get back to Portsmouth for meetings, and in the afternoons holding surgeries at the Civic Offices.
This means I have not been able to spend as much time as I would have liked meeting people and organisations in Portsmouth. Of course I am able to keep in touch with events, and I have a team in my office who respond to dozens of inquiries every day, ranging from people trying to solve “noisy neighbour” disputes to those caught up in complex disputes with some branch of the government.
In the first week of Recess, I have been involved in the Armed Forces Parliamentary Scheme. You might have seen a photo of me in The News or on social media - unfortunately the AFPS only issue Army pattern uniform. I am attached to the Royal Navy and I have spent the week working in the Naval Base and shore establishments learning more about the work they do, and about how the Navy operates. The purpose of the AFPS is to help MPs understand the workings of the Armed Forces, and is something I will be participating in throughout my time in Parliament.
I know many people who bought tickets for events at the America’s Cup weekend were left unhappy at the response to complaints to the organisers. It was a pity some poor organisation around ticketing took a bit of the shine off what otherwise was a great weekend for our city. If you have had problems, you can email [email protected] who will do what they can to help. Several people have contacted me, and having spent a lot of money on tickets myself for guests, I can understand the frustration the mix-up caused.
Lastly for this update, I wanted to touch on the chaos at Calais. I know the UK Border Force will do everything they can, but we need cooperation from the French government in restoring order on their territory. However there is a huge opportunity for Portsmouth here – our ferries to France are operating normally, and we remain a trouble-free gateway to the Continent for business or pleasure. I know Brittany Ferries are seeing an uplift in bookings, and I will do everything I can to promote Portsmouth as an alternative to Dover. We are the second-busiest ferry port on the South coast, and thanks to sound investment by the Council we have room to grow our trade in the years ahead.
Have a good weekend, and as always do get in touch if I or my team can help you in any way.
Kind regards
Flick