Richmond Park News: 15 May 2026

ADJOURNMENT DEBATE ON A THIRD RUNWAY AT HEATHROW AIRPORT

The construction of a third runway at Heathrow has always been a white elephant, but the case for expansion is now weaker than ever before. Yesterday, I led an Adjournment Debate in the Commons to lay out why the economics no longer add up, and to emphasise that the social and environmental consequences are unavoidable.

In the 10 years since this proposal was last put forward, the construction of a third runway and the necessary internal airport upgrades has risen to an eye-watering £49bn, while carbon abatement costs have doubled to over £100bn and the last estimate of surface access upgrades conducted by TfL, cited to be £15bn nearly a decade ago, are yet to be updated. 

The government has stated that costs associated with expansion will be privately financed, but I cannot see how a return could be made on such investments. This is while the already marginally reported benefits to the economy are overstated, as international transfer passengers are expected to make-up 75% of a projected third runway capacity. According to the Department for Transport’s (DfT) own guidance, these passengers do not contribute to the UK’s economy. When factoring this into the DfT’s Updated Appraisal Report, a third runway at Heathrow would result in billions of pounds in net present value losses.

The environmental damage that adding nearly 300,000 flights to our skies each year speaks for itself, but the social disruptions are also unavoidable. The health consequences of repeated noise disruptions are underreported. People living in communities surrounding Heathrow have a 24% higher chance of stroke, 21% higher chance of heart disease, and 14% higher chance of cardiovascular diseases, compared to people exposed to low levels of aircraft noise.

I am convinced that even factions of the government have realised that constructing a third runway at Heathrow is a bad decision, and in my speech, I pleaded with the Aviation Minister, Keir Mather MP, for the government to make a decision on expansion based upon its merits, and not push it through because the Chancellor has invested political capital into the project.

You can watch a clip of my speech by clicking here.

BATHING WATER DESIGNATION

I am delighted to announce that following representations made by myself and your Local Ward Councillors in both Kingston and Richmond, as well as lobbying from pressure groups and activists, the government has decided to designate Ham and Kingston Riverside with ‘bathing water status.’

This designation will come into force almost immediately, and to ensure that the stretch of river remains safe to bathe in, the Environmental Agency will conduct regular testing during the bathing season - which runs from 15 May to 30 September. This is of course a landmark decision in the context of the Teddington Direct River Abstraction, as it will ensure that Thames Water are unable to pollute our river any further with their proposal, and I will make sure to raise this point with the company when I next meet with them.

You can view the letter from the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, Emma Hardy MP, by clicking here.

PUBLIC ACCOUNTS COMMITTEE ON SHARED SERVICES

Yesterday, I attended a Public Accounts Committee session which examined the failure of government departments over the past two decades to successfully share services in a bid to significantly cut costs.

Slow progress since 2004 has meant that no departments have onboarded yet. Despite this, the Cabinet Office expects all departments to have onboarded by 2030. 

This process has been far slower than expected, and with the Cabinet Office’s target in mind, I asked the Chief Operating Officer at the Home Office, why data between departments is so difficult to standardise in a way which can be easily shared and translated between departments.

In response, the Chief Operating Officer emphasised that progress on this matter will save the taxpayer money on government services, but acknowledged that that action has been slow in some areas due to certain departments handling a significant amount of complex data which is difficult to standardise.

You can watch a clip of my question by clicking here.

LOCAL ELECTIONS RESULT IN THE ROYAL BOROUGH OF KINGSTON UPON THAMES

Further to the results of the council elections in Richmond, which I reported on last week, the new councillors in Kingston Borough have now been confirmed.  Tudor, Canbury Gardens and Kingston Gate wards returned Liberal Democrat councillors and Coombe Hill returned Conservatives. Overall the Liberal Democrats retained control of Kingston Council with 44 of the 48 council seats.

I would like to congratulate all of the candidates, across all of the parties, and both boroughs who stood in the local elections. 

While I was extremely pleased with the results in Kingston and Richmond, nearly half of the electorate in both boroughs will not have been. I have absolute faith that your newly elected councillors will work hard to ensure that every voice is listened to, but these results only underline the fact that our first-past-the-post voting system is not fit for purpose and produces disproportionate results. This is especially the case now with 5 parties contesting for seats across England. 

I tabled an Early Day Motion to Parliament to reinforce my belief that the UK desperately needs to introduce proportional representation into our elections, and you can view this by clicking here.

COMMUNITY NEWS

WALKING HISTORY TOUR

On Sunday 17 May 2026 between 14:00-16:00, Kingston Tour Guides will be hosting a free walking history tour of ancient pubs and inns in the Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames. 

The leisurely tour is both fun and informative, as strolling through the borough will provide the opportunity to learn more of the importance of Kingston’s brewing history. 

The tour will start outside The Fights Cocks Public House at 56 Old London Road, Kingston, with the walk happening once a month on a Sunday until September.

You can reserve a spot on the tour by clicking here.

CPR AND DEFIBRILLATOR TRAINING

On Thursday 28 May 2026 between 10:00-15:00, The London Heart Starters Campaign will be holding a day of training to teach you how to do CPR and use a defibrillator.

Training will be provided in short, 15-minute bursts, where you will have the opportunity to learn, practice, and ask questions. 

The event will be held at Kew Community Trust, St Luke’s Church, TW9 2AJ. Walk-ins are also welcomed on the day.

To book a specific time, please click here.