It was a pleasure to speak on behalf of Watford constituents in the Chamber earlier this week for #ArmedForcesWeek. It is vital that our brave veteran servicemen and women are given the support they deserve.

I know everyone’s excited about the announcement of Grand Theft Auto 6 in the news, released in November! You can read more about it here: www.bbc.co.uk/news/article... It was a treat to speak to some leaders of the UK video games sector at the Westminster Games Week.

It was great to ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport about the importance of combatting disinformation, and protecting people’s access to trustworthy news sources online. The Media Green Paper, ‘Watch This Space’, was published yesterday.

Kemi lost her head at PMQs - and afterwards too. It's not the first time. She's compared me to a Gestapo officer. I wonder what it is about a working class woman driving record investment in state schools by ending private schools' tax breaks that the Tories hate so much.

I am proud that Watford will benefit from a Youth Hub, bringing jobcentre help, training, mental health support and employer links under one roof in the places young people already know and trust.

I am disappointed that Keir felt he could no longer carry on but respect his decision. He worked extremely hard and always put the country first.  I wish his successor all the best. It is a great honour to serve in that role. Britain is a great country and can be greater still.

This is a great article on the current situation facing the Labour Party. labourlist.org/2026/06/the-...

Great to attend #WatfordPride today. Brilliant to see Hertsmere mayor, Parveen Rani in attendance. Congratulations to Impactful Lives and the other organisers. Also to Turning Point Herts and Hertfordshire Constabulary. Nice that it takes place on the Jo Cox Get Together w/e.

I sit on the Public Accounts Committee. We recently looked at government compensation schemes for Windrush, Horizon, Infected Blood and LGBT Veterans. In Pride Month, we should note the last one is closing in December. If you are talking to LGBT orgs this month, please tell them.

Another good session of surgery appointments today. I’m always humbled to hear of the challenges Watford residents face and grateful to my team in front of and behind the camera who help to deal with the issues that they raise.

A genuine honour to be able to visit @downingstreet reception to hear from the PM @Keir_Starmer on his return from the #G7. Before the game, obviously! 😉

Just for the record, I had a tiny bit to do with that first one. You’re welcome! 😉

Already high interest in the World Cup in Watford, thanks to Hornet Nestory Irankunda's goal, will reach fever pitch tonight at 9pm as England take on Croatia. Come on England. Bring it home!

So here’s some good news on the economics front. Of course, times are challenging and things have a long way to go but economic stability and growth is our way out of this. www.theguardian.com/business/liv...

The government has announced a ban on social media apps for under 16s.

Great piece on the #LabourGovernment’s track record on defence by my fellow Labour MP, @johnslingermp.bsky.social: labourlist.org/2026/06/labo...

Community pharmacy is an important part of all of our day-to-day lives. It’s especially true in Watford where in addition to many fantastic pharmacies, we have Sigma, a big local employer. So, it was brilliant to host the #RecognitionOfExcellence Awards in Parliament yesterday.

More money for good causes in #Watford and a better chance of being a #Lotto winner with the new #OneTicketTwoChances National Lottery game. www.watfordobserver.co.uk/leisure/2618...

One of the privileges of my job is to serve on the Public Accounts Committee. It was a real honour to ask questions of Sir Alan Bates and the other witnesses. www.watfordobserver.co.uk/news/2617046...

Watford’s community organisations were out in force at the weekend, showing residents the amazing work they do and recruiting volunteers to help them. I’d like to congratulate every one of them. You are making such a positive difference.

The #LabourGovernment Chancellor, Rachel Reeves has announced that the fuel duty freeze will be extended to the end of the year to help with the cost-of-living crisis.

Today, I’m launching a High Court claim against xAI, the company behind Grok. I am just one of thousands of women and even children who have been the victim of abusive and sexualised AI deepfakes. This should never have happened – and xAI must be held accountable. www.mirror.co.uk/news/politic...

An honour to hear #AlanMilburn speak about his report, Young People and Work on how the government is going to tackle YP not in education, employment or training (NEETS). This is one of the dominant issues of our age and this #LabourGovernment is determined to tackle it!

Great to attend the #HertfordshireHousingConference to hear about the progress and challenges in delivering more social and affordable housing in #Watford and Herts. Also good to see some familiar faces. Well done to the organisers.

It’s 1st June and you know what that means? Yep, Happy #PrideMonth to everyone celebrating!

The #TonyBlair essay this week made for interesting reading. But, I would urge you to read the response from @Keir_Starmer which sets out very clearly the vision, mission and trajectory of this government. And yes, the impressive progress so far too! keirstarmer.substack.com/p/tony-blair...

Great to host another surgery session in #Watford this week! My team and I are here to help. If you have casework, please get in touch and we will do our best to help.

Our public libraries in #Watford are vital spaces for families to access books, magazines, film and TV as well as the internet. Liberal Democrats in Watford and Hertfordshire have run a consultation on closing our precious library on Sundays. RESIST! Keep our libraries open!

An interesting approach to helping people have more babies. There’s a real need to up the birth rate in some European countries. This also serves the purpose of more considerate healthcare too. www.theguardian.com/world/2026/m...

Wishing a happy Eid al-Adha to all those celebrating in Watford and the wider community!

Young people have had it too tough for too long. Unsupported to find work, pushed into a cycle of benefits and poor prospects. Well, no longer! This #LabourGovernment is doing something about it and will help our young people find work: www.theguardian.com/society/2026...

Got a view on young people and access to social media? The #LabourGovernment wants to make sure that legislation is informed by what the public thinks and is running a consultation to gather views. Open till Tuesday. Have your say here: www.gov.uk/government/c...

Ooh, look! 👀 This #LabourGovernment just getting on with doing what it said it would do…

Good news on inflation today, on the back of IMF upward revision of growth earlier in the week. Burning through PMs would put all this at risk. My Watford Observer column: www.watfordobserver.co.uk/news/2611056...

So proud of the amazing @westhertsnhs.bsky.social staff who have ended “corridor care” at Watford General. Congratulations on your amazing work! It is a brilliant reminder of just how far we’ve come! www.itv.com/news/2026-05...

I don’t believe that now is the right time for a leadership election. Less than two years into office; economic policy starting to work in the face of phenomenal challenges, international policy putting Britain back on a credible footing; progress against all of the 5 Missions.

Many of our party members are extremely frustrated by the current shenanigans, especially as economic good news starts to emerge in a challenging international context. Worth a read: lauragriffiths1992.substack.com/p/where-do-w...

If you care about how digital tech and social media specifically are transforming our work, our lives, and our minds; then you should read this article. It’s not a two minute read… www.theguardian.com/media/ng-int...

Some great debates and fascinating speakers at this year’s #ProgressAnnualConference26.

🚨*NEW:* This Labour Government has now banned the online bots which have been scraping up driving test slots. This will help to prevent the exploitation of learners and drive down test waiting times.

Another great set of surgery appointments today. We will do all we can to help. Thanks to my excellent team for their work.

Great day today for #NHS news. Waiting lists down 110,000 in March - biggest non-COVID drop since 2008! Elective targets were hit, fastest stroke and heart attack ambulance rates for 5 years! 2,000 more GPs. 8,500 more mental health staff.

Great to see that learner drivers are going to take back control on booking driving tests. This is the kind of day-to-day frustration that makes people mad. Nice that the #LabourGovernment is doing something to fix it! news.sky.com/story/learne...

Lots of people tell me they are fed up with how long the government is taking to make them feel better off. I say that the #Change we promised is being delivered, across growth, health, opportunity, security and green energy. But it does take time.

If you commute from #WatfordJunction station, there’s some brilliant news coming on Monday 18th - 5,768 extra spaces on morning and evening weekday trains! That should reduce the number of noses in armpits on the sardine crush! 😀

Great to see this announcement. In today’s global economic chaos, it’s vital that we ensure core industries that are vital for our economy can continue. www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

An interesting and thoughtful piece on the recent elections and consequences for the country. Worth a read: labourlist.org/2026/05/the-...

Very entertaining performance of #Cluedo at the #PumpHouseTheatre. Lots of laughs and suspense! There’s even a well-timed gag about the 1945 and current Labour governments, which raised a chuckle.

Amongst all the weekend analysis of the admittedly bad for us local election results, it’s worth paying attention to this: www.theguardian.com/business/202...

Happy 100th Birthday #DavidAttenborough! You have brought such wonder and joy to our lives. Many happy returns. Enjoying reading Life on Earth at the moment! You are an example to us all to protect and care for our precious planet. 🌍