Alison Bennett's Monday Mail - First Days
Welcome to my Monday Mail for 8 July 2024. This is my first weekly update as your newly elected Liberal Democrat Member of Parliament for Mid Sussex!
We did it!
Thanks to the support of 21,136 people, I am now the first ever Liberal Democrat Member of Parliament for Mid Sussex. I cannot tell you how humbled I am by the trust you have put in me to represent you. When the result was declared just after 5am on Friday morning, I made an acceptance speech that you can watch or read online.
First Days
Over the weekend, I have received so many messages congratulating me on my win from people here in Sussex, across the UK and even from overseas. Thank you, and apologies if I have not managed to reply to you.
On Saturday, it was lovely to be asked to present the trophy at the Hurstpierpoint Gymnastics Club Championships. In the afternoon the St Lawrence Fair was lots of fun, and it was really amazing to have so many people stop me and wish me well.
Now the real work begins
I will be in Westminster this week as the induction process for new MPs gets underway, and during this time I will be formally sworn in.
This is a time to reflect on the scale of the change that happened last week. The general election of 2024 saw a record breaking number of seats change hands with 303 seats (47%) switching party. In addition to this, there will be more new MPs joining the Commons where an incumbent has retired and their successor is from the same party.
This gives me great hope for the future, and for a fresh start in the House of Commons. Time and again on the doorsteps during this campaign, I was met with deep disillusionment about politicians and the state of our politics. I don’t underestimate the challenge of turning that around and restoring trust. But I do have hope that now is the opportunity to begin this work.
If you are a resident of Mid Sussex and want to get in touch with me in relation to casework, please do bear with me while my official email address and office is setup over the next several weeks. I will need to receive all casework to my office, so I appreciate your patience and hope to share those contact details shortly.
Finally, a thank you
Winning a seat in a general election is an enormous team effort, I couldn’t have done it without the support of hundreds of people. Thank you for sharing my vision for a brighter future for Mid Sussex and the country, and for working so hard to make it possible.
Best wishes,
Cllr Alison Bennett
Member of Parliamentary for Mid Sussex
Mid Sussex Liberal Democrats
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