Welcome to the New Year. I do hope you have had a very Happy Christmas and may I wish you the very best for 2024.
My latest newsletter rounds up everything I have been up to in December, and although I had a short break with my family for the Christmas week, it was another packed month with some really exciting news for our area.
A nice story to start of with...
Our extended Ukrainian family continue to be very much part of our lives and we spent Christmas Day altogether with Anna and Sviatik opening presents, as part of our family so the children were altogether. As the war shows no sign of ending, we continue to look after this little family, and will do so until the end.
Just before Christmas though, Anna was keen to see the Thursford Christmas Spectacular. Apparently there is nothing like it in Ukraine! So it was lovely to take her and we were lucky enough to meet up with John Cushing, the incredible brains behind the show. Needless to say, Anna thought the show was absolutely marvellous.
East Runton may get it’s Blue Flag back again
Wonderful news for all of us that campaign to improve our water quality. At the start of the month, the Environment Agency released the testing results for our North Norfolk beaches.
None of our beaches went backwards, and in fact East Runton was restored to being assessed as having excellent water quality again. I quickly wrote to NNDC to request East Runton is given their Blue Flag back and they replied to say they will submit an application to do just this. It means that a majority of 4 out of our 7 beaches have been rated ‘excellent’ and 3 are assessed as ‘good’.
On top of this, my constant campaigning to have more testing and new laws to clean up our water companies is bearing fruit. This is despite the constant misinformation of rival political parties that has worried residents and damaged businesses with their dishonest information, all for political gain. I am glad they have been proved wrong!
Caring for Animals and Banning Live Exports
If you write to me and ask me to speak up for something in Parliament, I will always try to do my best. Many wrote to me to ask if I’d speak in the Banning Live Exports Bill.
I therefore spoke in the debate, seeking to ban the live export and transport of cattle, sheep, horses, goats and pigs into Europe. It is wrong that this still happens, just so these animals can be fattened and slaughtered abroad. The practice is totally unnecessary and results in many distressed animals hurting themselves while in transit, from being stressed. They are often slaughtered more inhumanely on their onward journey too.
We were unable to ban these live exports as an EU member because we were bound by EU rules on animal transport. But now we can pass this law, improving the welfare and conditions for animals in this country and stop this unnecessary and cruel trade.
The Sheringham Roundabout
I think we are gearing up for some amazing news with this key project of mine this year. To improve the safety and congestion on the A148 at the Holway Road junction, I have been campaigning for the government to help us with the funding to build a roundabout in Sheringham. Residents from Cromer to Sheringham to Holt, and all the villages in-between, want to see this built. It will of course also improve all the rat running through the villages of Beeston Regis and Upper Sheringham.
I am now in the final stages of negotiating the roundabout to be included in the ‘Levelling Up’ deal for Norfolk. If agreed, when the deal is finally announced, we could see the money delivered as part of the overall County package. It would mean we finally get the money to build the roundabout, which everyone tells me they are desperate to see delivered!
I won’t give up my campaign or negotiations to get this project delivered. If shoehorning the roundabout into this Norfolk deal gets it delivered, I will do everything I can.
Tackling Coastal Erosion
The last debate in Parliament for 2023 was regarding coastal erosion in Norfolk and Suffolk. It was vital that I remained in Parliament until the very end to be in the debate, to represent the many communities that suffer from this issue.
Experts predict that in the next 85 years, 1,000 homes could be at risk. With rising sea levels due to global warming and more extreme weather patterns, it is almost certain that we will see erosion speed up. Currently we see between 30cm to 2m of erosion along our coast each year. But some places have seen far more, such as Happisburgh, in just the last few months.
I have been campaigning for more support, although we have done well in North Norfolk in terms of funding to support our changing coast. We were the first area in the entire country to receive special funding under the Coastal Transition Accelerator Programme (CTAP). We received £15m to help areas such as Overstrand, Trimingham, Bacton and Happisburgh to plan for the future. We have £20m coming to bolster sea defences in Mundesley and Cromer and I will keep calling for future investment in Walcott and the surrounding area for the sand-scaping project that has protected the village and gas terminal.
I will always do what I can to protect our costal communities.
Flooding Public Meeting
With storm Babet causing havoc and more continued wet weather during December, I have arranged a major public meeting to discuss how we tackle the ever increasing flooding we have seen across the constituency. Most of the problems have occurred in the East of our region. Particularly Potter Heigham, Hickling and Horning. But of course we have had flooding in the Glaven Valley and Sheringham too.
You are most welcome to attend the meeting on the 2nd February at Hickling Parish Hall. We will have representatives from NCC, the Environment Agency, the Internal Drainage, Board, Anglian Water and Henry Cator, the Chair of the Flood Resilience Forum coming.
The Broads Authority will also be present to represent their areas of expertise.
Opening the new Barclays Hoveton & Wroxham bank hub and an update on the Sheringham Barclays hub situation
When the Hoveton Barclays shut, my office was involved to help find an alternative site. On the 15th December Jerome Mayhew MP and I, jointly opened the new Barclays hub at the United Reform Church. It has already proved invaluable and a new external cashpoint in Hoveton is soon to open too.
In Sheringham, I have pulled together local councillors to work with Barclays to find a suitable site for a similar local Barclays hub. We have a shortlist of suitable premises to research further and Barclays will be visiting these sites to try and work with the property owners to open a similar hub for Sheringham residents. I am pleased to have now helped deliver these hubs in Holt, Wroxham and soon Sheringham. They never replace the traditional bank branch, but they are certainly far better than losing all banking facilities. Certainly having a familiar face, on hand, is helping many residents.
And finally, delivering presents to care homes within Santa and attending the North Walsham Community Lunch
At Christmas there are always those less fortune than ourselves, so this year I joined the North Walsham Round Table boys to deliver Christmas presents and good wishes to Abbottswood Lodge care home in Swanton Abbott. This is a marvellous care home, looking after residents with complex and often special needs. On Christmas Day, I managed to pop in and helped with lunch for those who are perhaps elderly, lonely or on their own, at the incredible North Walsham community lunch. Now in its 28th year it just shows the incredible kindness and generosity there is in our communities. I thank everyone for what they’ve done for others this Festive season.
