Isle of Wight ferries on agenda for new MP Joe Robertson
It is three weeks since I was elected Member of Parliament for Isle of Wight East.
It is a great honour and privilege to represent my home.
I have wasted no time in trying to tackle some of the biggest issues facing our Island.
Earlier this week I met with the Secretary of State for Transport, Louise Haigh, to talk about ferry services.
I am pushing the Government to intervene by regulating prices and ensuring a minimum service obligation.
In my view, we do not need a lengthy investigation by the Competition Markets Authority (CMA). There is no guarantee that the CMA would find technical unfair practices but the Government should still act and has the power to do so.
There is likely to be an integrated rail network bill later this year which will complete Labour’s nationalisation of the railways and this presents a perfect opportunity to include ferry regulation.
It would make no sense to have a nationalised “integrated” rail network with unregulated private companies running ferries in between.
On Tuesday, I spoke for the first time in the House of Commons by asking the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care what action he would be taking to incentivise newly qualified dentists to deliver NHS appointments in coastal and rural communities like the Island.
Although Mr Streeting stopped short of making a specific commitment he confirmed that he would be using incentives to get new dentists to areas where they are needed most.
I will be pressing the East Wight’s case, not just for dentists, but for GPs and social care workers, drawing on my own experience of working with a health charity for over six years.
The Isle of Wight Council is currently consulting over primary school closures due to the oversupply of school places which is placing financial pressure on schools.
I met with the council cabinet member and director responsible to ensure that decisions are made only after full consultation with schools and parents and to ensure that decisions are based on fair and objective criteria. I have also been supporting schools and parents directly.
I have taken up my seat on Ryde Town Board to help finalise the strategy for distributing £20 million over the next seven to ten years.
I want to see a mix of smaller projects which can be delivered quickly together with some more ambitious plans. Reopening the splash pool and renovating the boating lake for residents and tourists could be delivered relatively quickly.
I also want to see new CCTV technology installed in the town centre which can be connected to the police control room and monitored in real time.
I will be setting up my new constituency office over the summer however I can be contacted on joe.robertson.mp@parliament.uk in the meantime.
