Richmond Park News: 25 July 2025

Parliament entered summer recess earlier this week, so I will be pausing my weekly newsletter until Parliament returns at the start of September. However, myself and my team will still be responding to emails and calls as normal, so please do not hesitate to reach out to my office during this period.

LETTER REGARDING CLOSURE OF POLICE STATION COUNTER CLOSURES:

Our constituency has been hit by the wide reaching cuts to London’s police forces in the past few decades, and I have been dismayed to hear about the plans to close Twickenham Station’s front counter.

As Richmond Park is no longer home to a police station, many local residents must cross the river to Twickenham to report crimes and to speak to officers at their nearest police station. While the Metropolitan Police’s figures report that the majority of crimes are reported online, most residents feel more assured when speaking to officers in-person, and reporting sensitive crimes can also be difficult for victims to do online.

In addition, Kingston Police Station’s front counter hours will be reduced, while the next nearest station for some residents is Wimbledon, which will also have its front counter completely closed. This attack on our policing resources cannot continue, and I signed a joint letter with my colleagues, Munira Wilson MP, Ed Davey MP and Paul Kohler MP, as well as the Leader of Richmond Council, Gareth Roberts, to the Home Secretary, Yvette Cooper MP, to underline the importance of the police counters to our respective communities, and to call for the government to provide the Met with more funding to prevent these cuts. 

You can see this letter in the images below.

I have also submitted an Early Day Motion (EDM) which highlights the need for Parliament to recognise the importance of front counters to vulnerable people in particular who may struggle to report crimes online, and to raise the importance that the counters have on providing accessibility to officers for local residents. 

DEFRA STATEMENT RESPONSE REGARDING THE INDEPENDENT WATER COMMISSION’S REVIEW:

Earlier in the week, the Independent Water Commission (IWC) published their report into England and Wales’ water sector, in which they recommended that Ofwat should be replaced with a more powerful regulator. This is an action that I have been calling on the government to take since they came into office last year, and I am glad that they plan to implement the IWC’s recommendation.

Last weekend saw areas of our constituency flood, while a burst main on Richmond Hill went unattended between Saturday night and Monday morning, resulting in water leaking into the gas line. As a consequence, a number of residents have been left without a working gas supply. 

Burst pipes and sewage dumping following storm overflows has become customary, but Ofwat has failed to collect a single penny of fines from Thames Water. 

In my speech, I asked the Secretary of State for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, Steve Reed MP, to set out a timeline for when the IWC’s recommendation will be implemented. Steve Reed concurred with my concerns about the regulation of our water sector, and stated that a White Paper will be published in the Autumn, while legislation will be brought forward in the first half of this Parliament.

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

CABINET OFFICE STATEMENT RESPONSE REGARDING INFECTED BLOOD SCANDAL:

On Monday, in my capacity as Cabinet Office Spokesperson for the Liberal Democrats, I responded to the government statement on Sir Brian Langstaff’s additional report on the Infected Blood Scandal.

Victims of the Infected Blood Scandal and their families deserve compensation. Victims and their families have been mistreated, and have been waiting for decades to see justice. That is why the eventual creation of the Infected Blood Compensation Scheme in August 2024 was welcomed.

However, Sir Brian’s recent report has brought to light a number of scathing findings, largely surrounding the lack of proper engagement with victims. One particularly damning line stated that victims ‘had not been listened to.’

Therefore, in my response, I pushed the government to reverse the unacceptable practice of excluding victims from the scheme. In particular, I asked the Minister to confirm whether and when he would implement Sir Langstaff’s recommendation to introduce a formal advisory body of victims for the Infected Blood Compensation Authority.

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

MEETING WITH NETWORK RAIL REGARDING THE DISTRICT LINE:

As mentioned in my newsletter last week, the continued unreliability of the District Line service has caused disruption to local residents and businesses in Richmond. This week, I met with Network Rail’s Route Engineer and their Routes Operations Manager to discuss the disruptions and to query what measures are being taken to improve the service. 

Network Rail’s representatives admitted that the service has experienced too many delays and cancellations recently, and that investment is being put into improving the service’s reliability. This includes action to reduce the amount of fires and overheating from occurring, and work is also being undertaken to renew switches and crossings on the network.

While the service has certainly experienced more delays and cancellations recently, the line frequently experiences disruptions throughout the year, and I can assure you that I will continue to engage with Network Rail to ensure that the service is improved.

MEETING WITH THE LOCAL GOVERNMENT MINISTER:

As frequent readers of my newsletter will know, I have raised my concerns about the government’s plans to alter the formula which is used to calculate the financial support that should be distributed to Councils in England.

My main concerns have been surrounding the measurements used in the formula as the omission of deprivation of housing and the lack of an updated census would disadvantage London boroughs. 

I met with the Minister for Local Government, Jim McMahon MP, this week to raise these concerns to him directly. As a number of London MPs have now recognised the impact that the current formula would have on residents, the minister was aware of these concerns, and he recognised that the absences of crucial data could distort the distribution of government grants. The minister stated that the government is finding it difficult to source robust statistics for deprivation after housing costs, but the census data used will be updated using Visit Britain’s data set.

As mentioned, last week, my colleague, Munira Wilson MP, and I, penned a letter to the minister, and I am awaiting a more detailed response to these concerns once his department has investigated them thoroughly.

VOLUNTEER DAYS IN PARLIAMENT:

Over the past two Fridays, I have been joined by two brilliant groups of young volunteers who have been assisting my office with research tasks.

I was encouraged to see just how engaged the students were with the tasks assigned to them, and myself and my team were very impressed with the quality of work they produced. It was an absolute pleasure to host them in Parliament.

THE DRAGON BOAT RACE:

Last Sunday, I attended the annual Dragon Boat Race in Kingston, which is an event that raises money for The Silverlining Brain Injury Charity. This charity supports individuals who have suffered from life-altering brain injuries, and it was excellent to see so many volunteers participating in the races, cheering on from the sidelines or managing stalls. 

Today also marks World Drowning Prevention Day, and the RNLI Teddington Lifeboat workers helpfully informed me about the effectiveness of throw bags and demonstrated how to use them, see below image.

Throw bags are rescue devices which can be used to prevent someone from drowning. In the case that someone is on shore or by a swimming pool and are not confident that they can rescue the person drowning by jumping in, they can throw them the floatation bag attached to a rope and pull them into safety. 

You can find out more about the importance of throw bags for water safety by clicking here.

COMMUNITY NEWS:

AI WORKSHOP FOR SMALL BUSINESSES AND ENTREPENEURS: 

This Sunday, Shop Startup, Computer Computer Computer, and Crystalisr Cooperative are hosting an AI workshop for small businesses and entrepreneurs at Canbury Works in Kingston. 

The 4 hour workshop helps you develop skills such as crafting precision AI prompts and designing AI agents, and you can learn more about the workshop by clicking here.

ATHEL’S TOWN: SAXON ENCAMPMENT AND REENACTMENT: 

This weekend on Lower Ham Road in Canbury Gardens, there will be displays, music, and storytelling all taking inspiration from the Saxon period as part of a continuation of Kingston’s Cultural Celebrations.

The event is suitable for people of all ages, and if you wish to learn more about the festival, you can do so by clicking here.