Alison Bennett's Monday Mail: Bottling it

Standing up for Mid Sussex on water and housing

I often say to people that Parliament works like a giant raffle. It should not be like this, but it is. Last week my name came out of ‘the hat’ for Keir Starmer’s last ever outing at Prime Minister’s Questions.

There was not much doubt in my mind what I should ask him. The issue that people right across Mid Sussex are rightly furious about is our fresh water supply. As regular readers will know, most weeks there is at least one village or community that has to go without water.

But added to this, the Government continues to push for significant additional new housing development, and yet there is no obligation for water companies to say whether they can supply the extra water needed to support those new homes.

New homes are needed, but they must be matched by investment in the infrastructure that supports them. That means - amongst other things - ensuring water companies like South East Water have both the responsibility and the resources to deliver resilient water supplies.

I'll continue pressing the Government to make sure infrastructure comes first, so that existing residents and future communities alike can have confidence that essential services will keep up with growth.

Labour bottles it on local government reorganisation

Once again, the Government waited until the final day before Parliament’s recess to make its next set of announcements for reorganising local government across England. Whilst most areas got certainty about what their new councils will look like, for us in West Sussex, the government decided not to make a decision, and now we will have to wait until October for any more clarity. 

Over the last two years, at every step of the way, the government has messed around when it comes to Sussex: delaying the creation of a Sussex mayor for two years, cancelling elections and then being forced to reinstate them, ignoring the local councils’ recommendations, coming up with their own, and now deciding against making a decision. 

It is beyond a joke, and all the while, the jobs of people who work for our councils, and the local services that they provide us with are in limbo. 

Andy Burnham becomes prime minister today with devolution as one of his signature policies. I for one hope that he’s going to do better for West Sussex than Starmer’s government did. 

A new Prime Minister, but where is the scrutiny?

This week marks the beginning of Parliament's summer recess.

While MPs continue working in their constituencies throughout the summer, the House of Commons will not be sitting, meaning ministers will not face scrutiny from MPs until September.

That feels particularly significant this year. By the time Parliament returns, the country will have had a new Prime Minister in office for six weeks. Over the weekend, the newspapers have been awash with what Andy Burnham may or may not announce. Some of these proposals, if true, will mark a significant shift from what was in Labour’s 2024 General Election manifesto. I do not think that it is right that MPs will have no opportunities to question ministers in the House of Commons until September.

Out and about this summer

Although Westminster is in recess, my work across Mid Sussex continues. I'll be spending the coming weeks visiting local organisations, meeting residents, holding constituency appointments and continuing to campaign on the issues that matter most to our communities.

Getting in touch

My parliamentary email address is: alison.bennett.mp@parliament.uk. If you need my help, please get in touch.

Best wishes,
Alison

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