Recent News

  Whether you are a resident of mine in Billericay East or not, if you are reading this then I hope that you and your families are staying safe and well.   It is a very difficult time for many people and I am conscious that we all need to pull together and support our…

There has been much talk recently about PPE (personal protective equipment) for frontline NHS staff and I know that ensuring these guys have everything they need is a big concern for everyone. I cannot speak to every hospital in the country but, as you would expect, I have made enquiries regarding what, if any, help…

I recently got rather overtaken by ‘events’ – like everyone, I suspect. But, now that we all find ourselves stuck at home, I find I have plenty of time to catch up on correspondence. Many of you were contacting me about potholes and I had intended to write this article about a fortnight ago (seems…

Dear residents, As many of you will be aware, myself and the other Billericay borough and county councillors usually hold a monthly surgery on the last Saturday of each month at Billericay Library. It will not surprise any of you, I am sure, to hear that we have been advised to cancel these for the…

I have not written a blog in some time, but I wanted to talk about a topic that has been on my mind for a while. There was much talk in Billericay recently about the closure of our high street branch of Argos and today it has been announced that Kasbah, a women’s clothing shop…

As is being widely reported in the media, confirmed cases of the Covid-19 coronavirus continue to spread around the world. As of 25th February, a total of 6,795 people have been tested in the UK, of which 6,782 were confirmed negative and thirteen positive. These figures now include the four cases from the Diamond Princess…

The year 2019 is coming to a close with an almost mirror image of the end of 2018. In 2018, I entered the year as an Opposition backbencher on Basildon Council, with a Labour-led alliance in power, only for the Conservative Group to regain administration in May and the new Leader of the Council, Cllr…

The most important General Election for a generation The Stakes could hardly be higher…   We are having a General Election. I am assuming this has not escaped anyone’s attention. This is not an election the Conservative Party wanted. We wanted to deliver Brexit, fulfil the mandate of the British people expressed in the 2016…

Since the announced resignation of the Prime Minister, Theresa May, I have been asked many times and by many people – though few as doggedly as Johnny Jenkins at Gateway FM – whom I would be supporting in a Conservative leadership election. I have resisted, up until now, all attempts to coax an answer from…

On Saturday, I attended a meeting of the National Conservative Convention in my capacity as Chairman of Basildon & Billericay Conservative Association and sat in on a hustings for the upcoming Conservative leadership election, attended by all six of the remaining candidates and I thought I would share my recollections and thoughts about the occasion.…