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Some say that the hothouse of the House of Commons is immune from the problems faced outside of Westminster. When the snow came earlier this month it certainly did not discriminate between my two places of work – Watford and Westminster. Not a single bus was on the road in London and the Tea room for MPs in the House of Commons failed to open. Apparently when the bombs fell on the House of Commons and Westminster during world war 2, the tea room and the buses carried on. It’s amazing that our city and large parts of our country grinds to a halt when we have snow. Please local councils – can we have more salt and grit! Indeed in Watford, as I battled through to get the kids to nursery there was a sense that these events are sent to try us, but with true Blighty spirit, I managed to attend most of my weekly events.

The most poignant was certainly the military funeral held in central Watford of Captain Tom Sawyer who died in Afghanistan. The public may not always share the view of where politicians deploy our armed services but one thing I know we can agree on is that these are brave young men and women who put their lives on the line for Queen and country.

Being the local MP can bring such highs and lows that no day is ever the same. In the last few weeks I have met with local residents campaigning to save bus services such as the 318 and also had the chance to meet the Palestinian Ambassador who came to Watford to talk about the suffering in Gaza and the need for peace. Local train users have also been lobbying very hard on the new train timetable as it seems that many have been stuck on platforms trying to squeeze on to trains with too few carriages heading into London. I have met with London Midland and I am hoping that we might be able to persuade them to look again at these services.

From trains to planes, Heathrow has featured highly for some Watford people too. The decision to support a third runway has caused a few people to write to me. I think it is a good economic decision that will bring new jobs to our area and encourage more businesses in the future to look at Watford. Secondly, if we don’t increase capacity, supply will increase elsewhere in Europe which means that we could actually lose jobs at Heathrow. Finally, I think we are far enough away from the real noise and will not be significantly affected by a third runway. I know it will be controversial but this is a decision for the country as a whole and I think it’s the right one. If you don’t agree let me know. I am happy to hear from you.

I hope in future House Notes I can let you know a bit more about my work as an MP and what issues are most worrying local people. If you have a different worry – let me know. Your issue may be the high or the low of my day!