I'VE been making myself unpopular with my Parliamentary colleagues by trying to get Parliament to continue to sit over Christmas.

With the Brexit fiasco still unsolved, I think we should be coming into work over the Christmas break – just like so many other people have to do – to sort this mess out, get inevitable defeat of Theresa May’s deal out the way and start finding a solution.

But the Government got their way and we have the votes on the Brexit deal to look forward to in early January – further delaying the inevitable defeat for Theresa May’s deal. I’ll keep you updated.

Over the past 12 months it has been great to see so many familiar faces and meet many more new ones too. From supporting local businesses to opening Abingdon Tennis Club’s new courts, to attending the cycling festival and meeting staff at the community hospital – and of course taking part in the bun throwing – getting out and about and listening to how we can make Abingdon and Oxfordshire an even better place to live is the best part of my job.

I’ve been taking the fight to Westminster on the issues that residents tell me matter the most – decent funding for our NHS, police and schools; giving mental health the attention it deserves; reinstating bus services; standing up for our science, research and university sector and raising local issues directly in the Parliament and with Government ministers.

I’ve been urging the Ministry of Defence to look again at flights over Abingdon from RAF Benson giving increasing numbers of noise complaints; I’m campaigning to improve step-free disabled access to both platforms at Radley station; I’m holding local councils and the Government’s feet to the fire over promises for the Lodge Hill junction and urging a reform of planning laws so that infrastructure is in place before people move into new homes.

Always near the top of my postbag and email inbox is the Oxford-Cambridge Expressway – I’m doing everything I can to ensure this doesn’t damage our communities and environment (and posing the question about whether it is needed at all and why we aren’t investing in rail links). I’m also fighting for the recommendations to improve safety and reduce congestion on the A34 to be put into action. And I’m continuing to call for a public enquiry so we can get all the facts and people can have their say before any decisions are taken to build the proposed Abingdon reservoir.

I’ll keep up the campaigning in the New Year, but if there’s ever anything that I can help with, that I can raise in Parliament please don’t hesitate to get in touch.