On 4th July 2024 James became Lewes's MP with a majority of 12,624.

James's newsletters

Issues

Here are some excerpts from James's maiden speech, which can be viewed at Youtube.

I also want to thank the voters in my community for putting their trust in me. That includes those who lent me their support tactically in this election. I will always campaign for electoral reform so that everybody's vote really counts. 

We have two beautiful rivers, the Cuckmere and the Ouse which flow into Seaford Bay. Sadly they have been used by Southern Water as a dumping ground for sewage including discharges in recent weeks. I look forward to seeing proposals brought forward by this government to take on sewage dumping.

It is encouraging to hear support from  many members for ramping up renewable energy. Our constituents, the business community and the UK's international allies are carefully watching this new government and this Parliament to see if we're serious about once again making the UK a leader in the transition to a clean, safe and inclusive low carbon economy. I hope we will work together in a constructive spirit to show that we are indeed serious and fine words are matched with bold action.

Locally we have seen the benefits of community energy and heat networks. We must ensure that communities that are taking  renewable energy facilities such as solar, can directly benefit. This should include community ownership of small scale schemes. It isn't just about energy generation either, it's also about transmission, and other honourable members today have mentioned delays in energy schemes getting off the ground because of connectivity issues to the grid. I'll be delighted to welcome the new minister, and congratulations on his appointment, to my constituency, at some stage to discuss the important role which community energy and microgeneration can play in our future energy mix, and introduce him to some of the people working hard on the ground in my community to make it happen. On a larger scale we have the major offshore wind array, which is serviced from Newhaven port, which generates enough energy to power 350,000 homes and was signed off by the then Secretary of State for energy, Ed Davey.

Many members are parents, like me, and we all need to be able to look our children in the eye and say we did everything we could to secure their future and that of all future generations. Doing the best for our children, all children is one of my personal political priorities, particularly through early years. We need to start treating childcare less as a cost to the taxpayer, and more as an investment in the future of our country. In a previous job I worked in deprived communities across the country to support improving literacy for young children. The transformative effect of supported learning in the first five years of a child's life is immense. I'm pleased to hear the government talking more about free and subsidised childcare, but that must be matched with a real commitment to properly funding nurseries and other early years settings. Thousands of nurseries have closed in recent years and we have to think about supporting early years providers alongside supporting parents.

I am proud to repesent my constituency, humbled to sit in this house, and determined to make the most of every day I have to be the best possible MP for the people of Lewes constituency. The last Liberal Democrat who held the title was the formidable Norman Baker and I too intend to work hard for every corner of the constituency. In the last five years since the election the country has been through a lot. The highest public offices have at times been degraded, and trust in politics remains low. We have an opportunity and a responsibility to get our politics and our country onto a better, fairer, greener and more prosperous path, and I look forward to working constructively with the new government and other opposition parties to help deliver just that.