Dear Reader,
Prior to the 2010 general election I was appointed as a Opposition Whip with responsibility for the Treasury and I worked with George Osborne. Following the general election, David Cameron appointed me as a Government Whip with responsibility for the Department of Education and the Foreign Office. As a result, for the last sixteen months, I have been working closely with Michael Gove, Secretary of State at the Department of Education and William Hague, Secretary of State at the Foreign Office. I have really enjoyed my time working with these two departments. However, I am now moving departments and I will be working with Theresa May, Secretary of State at the Home Office and Owen Paterson, Secretary of State for Northern Ireland. I am looking forward to working with the new department and the Ministers and the challenges that lay ahead. Working with a department puts me in a much better position to represent Rochford and Southend East and experiences in our area help inform government at the highest level.
I have always listed my interests as cycling and running and unfortunately I don’t do either as much as I would like. That was until recently when I took part in 3 cycling events in 8 days! After dusting the bike down and removing the ivy from between the spokes I took part in Southend Bikeathon for Leukaemia and Lymphoma Research, Ride and Stride event and Foulness Island Bike Ride. The Foulness Island Bike Ride was very close to being discontinued a few years ago, however, I am delighted to say that the Rotary Club, QinetiQ and event supporters were all able to work together to prevent that from happening. This particular cycling event raises £15,000 - £20,000 for charity and I would like to thank everyone for enabling this fantastic annual event to continue. Not only does it raise substantial amounts for charity but it also enables people that would not have been able to visit Foulness to see the island.