Merry Christmas from the campaign trail

As we come towards the end of another year, I’d like to wish you all a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year. 

At this special time of the year, I hope that you’ll be able to find time to be with your family and friends and that you’ll be able to enjoy a festive break.

Think of others less fortunate than ourselves.

As Christmas approaches, we put up our tree, write our cards, start to listen once again to our favourite Christmas music and try to be optimistic about the coming year. But, we should always remember that whilst we will be having a nice Christmas, some, through no fault of their own, may not have the same opportunities. We should do what we can to help to make sure that as many people as possible have a happy Christmas where they can be warm, have good food and enjoy time with other people.

There will be a General Election in 2024.

It’s been good to meet so many of you when we have knocked on your door.  Thank you for being so welcoming and enthusiastic for a new MP in Wokingham at next year General Election.

It is almost certain that sometime in 2024 there will be a general election.  With the Conservative Party continuing to implode and demonstrate that they are hopelessly split, the election could be sooner than later.

The Conservatives are split on Prime ministers’ Rwandan policy.

Currently the Conservatives are split into at least 5 different factions, each with differing views about the Prime Minister’s latest policy for sending asylum seekers to Rwanda.

Rather than focusing on this one scheme which, even if implemented, won’t make much difference,  the government should be working with our allies to tackle the people traffickers, processing asylum claims quickly and not having asylum seekers couped up in hotels across the country waiting months and sometimes years to have their cases heard.

The splits go wider than just Rwanda, the Conservatives continue to be divided about Europe and about how to deal with a cost-of-living crisis which has been created largely by their policies.

We are now more taxed than we have been since 1948.

We should not forget that the budget of Liz Truss a little more than a year ago, so strongly and loudly applauded by Wokingham’s MP John Redwood, pushed up interest rates which now mean a household re-mortgaging in Wokingham has a minimum of an extra £500 a month (£6,000 a year) to pay in interest on their mortgage.

Along with a 30% increase in food bills and a doubling of energy bills means that the average household has at least £7,000 less to spend in the local economy supporting local traders and businesses.

All over the country high streets and local town centres are suffering because of the policies of the Conservative party.

The Royal Berkshire Hospital

You have rightly told me that you are annoyed that the promised replacement of the Royal Berkshire hospital has been seriously stalled.  The Conservatives promised a replacement by 2030 in the December 2019 General election. I hope that next year we get a clear indication from the government that we will get our new hospital and that we won’t have to wait until 2030 for the building to start.

We should all thank the wonderful healthcare professionals who work in the NHS for the fantastic job they do in very difficult conditions and circumstances.

The Covid Inquiry

Many of you have told me how disappointed you have been with response of senior Conservatives when they appear before the Covid inquiry.  Also, how saddened you are at the attempts of Boris Johnson, Matt Hancock, Rishi Sunak and others to rewrite history. It’s been staggering to see the lack of remorse for getting things so wrong, as has the incredible sense of entitlement that emanates from the former Conservative Ministers and their advisors.

Next year we’ll hear more about the scandals that been developing around the supply of PPE in 2020/21. There are some serious questions to be asked about how hundreds of millions of pounds appear to have gone missing.

Make this John Redwood’s last election as our MP.

Once again, I would like to thank the many people who have told me that they want to have a change of MP in Wokingham next year, especially the lifelong Conservatives who cannot support their party anymore after the debacle of the last 4 years.  I’m also grateful to  the many Labour party supporters who realise that the best way to beat the Conservatives in Wokingham is to support the Liberal Democrats.  Labour themselves have admitted that they do not see Wokingham as a ‘battleground’ seat and are expected to focus their efforts in Berkshire elsewhere.

Thank you for your enthusiasm and your support.

Please do not hesitate to contact either me or one of our Liberal Democrat team if you need our assistance. 

Clive Jones

Liberal Democrat Parliamentary candidate for Wokingham.