Protecting Our Environment

As Storm Goretti gracefully swept a band of sleet, rain and winds through Essex, I found myself on a muddy footpath a couple of miles from Ongar admiring a sty full of pigs while a flock of geese honked crossly from a nearby shed, angry they were being kept inside to protect them from the latest bir

A very Happy New Year to all readers of this column in the Epping Forest Guardian.The western part of my Brentwood and Ongar constituency is largely rural, with a significant part of the land around Ongar and the surrounding villages being used for agriculture and farm-based businesses.Some of my lo

As the Parliamentary session draws to a close this week, there is a chance to look back on the year.The Government’s Planning and Infrastructure Bill, which threatens to ride roughshod over the views of local people when it comes to maintaining our green belt and listening to concerns about water su

I have long campaigned for the preservation of our greenbelt. Whilst I know that some housebuilding is inevitable, it is extremely important that largescale building does not lead to London expanding indefinitely into the countryside.

The Lower Thames Crossing team have been in touch with news of progress at Hole Farm, the new 100-hectare multi-purpose woodland, sitting alongside the M25 at the northern end of the proposed Lower Thames Crossing.Construction of the site is nearing an end, with some of the on-site kit being removed

The Government’s Planning and Infrastructure Bill is causing great concern for many of my constituents who, like me, want to protect the green belt around Brentwood and Ongar.The green belt is not just a series of fields and the chance to admire the view of cows and sheep grazing from the window of

Spending time with like-minded politicians and activists at the annual Conservative Party Conference is a key part of my year, and none more so than this year.Since Kemi Badenoch became the leader of the Conservative Party last year, I have been part of a small team working with her on a review of a

I know we are all apprehensive when we hear about local planning applications going in nearby, or on sites that we know from old.  We are all concerned about the loss of green space, pressure on local services, and changes to the character of our much-loved towns and villages.I take these conce

On a sunny July evening, I joined a group of about fifty people gathered in a classic Essex boarded barn on Tawney Common in Stapleford Tawney.

Today [Tuesday 18 March 2025] Kemi Badenoch, Leader of the Conservative Party, announced the Policy Renewal Programme. We are living off the inheritance of previous generations. For three centuries, every era in our country’s history left a better legacy for its children. The greatnes