Some conversations on Twitter recently have me thinking about what I want to achieve as an MP. Realistically, I am unlikely to form part of government in the near future, but that doesn’t mean I can’t achieve things as a backbencher. As such, I thought it would be useful to make a list of the things I want to achieve as a backbencher.
- Push for a review of student financing, i.e. whether tuition fees are offering value for money and if loans are sufficiently generous in terms of both amount and interest rates.
- Push for an amended Housing Bill that sets a minimum standard of habitation for rented properties.
- Insist on an enquiry into the wasted money during the Covid pandemic, and a push to get back money that was transferred to fraudulent or sub-standard providers, either from the companies themselves or from the person who made the introduction.
- Push for more representation in Parliament of diverse interests.
- Attempt to influence people to move away from custom and convention as the most important aspect of parliamentary conduct.
- Vote for laws designed to protect the NHS as a free-at-access service for all people. Ditto education.
Clearly there are a lot more things that I would like to achieve, but in reality many of those would rely on being more than just a lone voice in Parliament. As such, I don’t think that I can target those as goals for my time as a backbencher.
