THIS week parliament returned from a busy recess – a time that brought a welcome opportunity to spend a bit more time here in the constituency these past two weeks. It is always a good chance to catch up with our communities, attend events, visit local businesses and speak to so many residents about their concerns. I’ll be raising some of these issues over the next few weeks in parliament.
Last week, I was honoured to be invited to attend the 20th British Academy Games Awards and celebrate the incredible video games that have been produced over the last year. Here in Warwick and Leamington, we have a huge amount of gaming companies, rightly earning Leamington the title ‘Silicon Spa’.
The contribution of the UK games industry is enormous, the largest in Europe, and we’re lucky to have so many studios call our towns home. It was great to talk with people in the industry, civil servants and others and hear more about the work they are doing. My congratulations to all the winners and those who were nominated for such prestigious awards.
As MPs are now back in parliament, we have chance to ask questions to the Government about various events that took place over recess. I took the opportunity this week to ask the prime minister about the disgraceful killing of three UK World Central Kitchen volunteers at the start of this month and if he had received a written apology from Israel’s prime minister. It appears he has not.
These killings of course do not exist alone and are now part of the utterly horrific statistics of 34,000 killed people in Gaza. Innocent civilians continue to endure unimaginable conditions with warnings now that famine is imminent. I will continue to raise the appalling conditions of the population of Gaza and push for the immediate ceasefire that is so desperately needed.
Finally, this is my last column before the local elections on May 2 so my last chance to remind you to ensure you have the necessary photo ID to vote. It is a measure the government have introduced to apparently counter voter fraud (of which there were only four convictions in 2019…) and it is crucial you do not let it stop you from exercising your right to vote.
Please check if you have an eligible form of ID, and if not ensure you apply for a free voter certificate by 5pm on April 24 in order to get one in time for the local elections on May 2.
Local elections are as important as general elections. They are our chance to have our voices heard locally and ensure we have good local representatives raising our concerns and acting on them.
Please take five minutes to check you’re able to make your voice heard on May 9.
As always, please do not hesitate to get in touch if you have any issues or concerns you would like to raise with me. I can be reached on [email protected] or on 01926 882006.
Matt Western
MP for Warwick and Leamington
