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Storm Goretti really shook Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly. Homes and businesses were damaged, vulnerable people were isolated, and tragically, a life was lost. Many of our roads have been blocked, power and internet connections were cut, and some have been without water. Our emergency services, utility teams, volunteers, and neighbours have responded brilliantly. I’m immensely proud of the way Cornwall has come together in the face of adversity. As the clean-up continues, I’ve been listening to your experiences and looking at how Cornwall can be better prepared. The storm exposed weaknesses in our infrastructure, communication systems, and emergency planning. We need to consider long-term backup options rather than relying solely on digital systems. We must also improve priority services for vulnerable people, enabling organisations such as the NHS to make automatic referrals and reducing the need for individuals to self‑register. At a public meeting I hosted in Penryn, we discussed practical ways to build local resilience. These included establishing designated emergency hubs with generators and satellite phones in every village, strengthening community emergency plans, maintaining updated lists of vulnerable residents, and creating an interactive map showing blocked routes and hub locations. In the meantime, if you haven’t already self‑registered with your service providers, please do. I’d also encourage everyone to prepare an emergency box with essential items such as water, candles, a power bank, a battery‑powered radio, and a camping stove just in case. As storms of this magnitude become more likely, strengthening local resilience must be a priority.

I’m hopeful for 2026; thanks to the extensive groundwork laid in the first year, we are beginning to see results. Interest rates have fallen, helping homeowners with mortgages Inflation is easing Wages are rising faster than they have in a decade We’ve raised the National Living Wage We’ve cut £150 from the average energy bill Frozen rail fares Opened 500 more Free Breakfast Clubs Frozen prescription charges Investment in the NHS has delivered 5 million extra appointments and reduced waiting lists Renters now have stronger protections The Employment Rights Act is giving people greater security at work The Two‑Child Limit has been scrapped, lifting 450,000 children out of poverty The state pension has increased These are real, practical changes that are already helping improve everyday life.

From our pets and wildlife, to the farm animals that sustain our rural economy, animal welfare matters to us. That is why I am proud this Labour Government has launched the most ambitious Animal Welfare Strategy in a generation. We are closing loopholes, strengthening protections, and reviewing penalties for wildlife cruelty. We are banning trail hunting and cruel snare traps, and introducing a close season for hares. For pets, reforms will tackle puppy farming and smuggling, end imports of underage puppies, and consult on banning electric shock collars. Through the Renters’ Rights Bill, we’ll also make it easier for tenants to keep pets in rented homes. Farmed animals will benefit too, with the Animal Health and Welfare Pathway supporting high standards and phasing out confinement systems. And for the first time, humane slaughter standards for farmed fish will be recognised in law. Combined with plans to reduce animal testing, this strategy reflects our values as a nation of animal lovers. Thank you to all my constituents who have been campaigning hard for this change.

Thank you to everyone who has been in touch this year. My office is always here to listen and help. While my team will take a short break between Christmas and the New Year, we will be back at full strength in January, and I look forward to getting straight back to work. If you need support, you can reach me by email at jayne.kirkham.mp@parliament.uk   or by phone on 01872 300 353 . However you spend the festive season, I hope you find moments of peace. Wishing you a joyful Christmas and a hopeful New Year. Thank you for your support. Yours, Jayne Christmas Card Competition This year, I invited pupils from Tregolls School in Truro and St Francis School in Falmouth to design the front and back of my Christmas card. Congratulations to Chloe and Evelyn for their winning designs, and a huge thank you to every child who took part. It was lovely to receive such a brilliant selection of artwork, and I have all the entries proudly displayed in my constituency office window in Truro. If you’re passing by, do take a look.

Recently, I joined volunteers at Truro Homeless Action Group for an early breakfast shift.   They serve food 365 days a year.   Homelessness has no place in a fair society, and charities can’t be expected to tackle it alone.   Labour’s new £3.5 billion Homelessness Strategy aims to halve rough sleeping, end B&Bs for families, and prevent homelessness before it starts.   Cornwall will get help to support families in temporary accommodation and with essentials like food and school travel.   Alongside scrapping the Vagrancy Act and investing £39 billion in social housing, this is really important action, and I will keep working to make sure Cornwall’s unique challenges are considered.

No government has gone as far as this one in addressing Violence Against Women and Girls (VAWG). After years of campaigning and hard work, the long awaited VAWG Strategy is here. And I am really pleased to see that it focuses on prevention as well as protection. The strategy is built around three goals: 1) preventing the radicalisation of young men, 2) stopping abusers, and 3) supporting victims. Education is central, and every student will receive lessons on healthy relationships and consent, backed by £20 million for teacher training, helplines, and resources to tackle misogyny and online harms. We are also strengthening online protections through the Online Safety Act and banning harmful apps. Perpetrators will face tougher measures, including Domestic Abuse Protection Orders and new court markers. Victims will get better support through Raneem’s Law, expanded helplines, safe accommodation, and NHS referral services. This is the most ambitious plan ever to end VAWG.

No one should ever have to pull out their own tooth. Yet for some people, that is the desperate reality. Cornwall is a “dental desert”, and many don’t have access to a local NHS dentist, leaving them in pain, travelling miles for care, and turning up at the hospital with tooth decay. This Government is overhauling NHS dentistry. From April 2026, a new £4 billion contract will prioritise urgent and complex care, replacing the outdated UDA system that rewards quick check-ups over time-consuming treatment. Prevention is key, with supervised toothbrushing for 3 to 5 year olds, expanded water fluoridation, and fluoride varnish programmes rolling out nationally. In Cornwall, four new NHS practices are being tendered, a mobile dental unit is reaching vulnerable communities, and recruitment incentives are in place to help attract NHS dentists. No one should be left in pain, and no one should ever have to pull out their own tooth.

Removing bins from Cornwall Housing areas is deeply disappointing. Recently, I joined other volunteers for a litter pick around the Beacon in Falmouth. We collected over 100kg of rubbish. Four times the weight of the last litter pick in this area before the public bins were removed.  I understand the cost pressures on Cornwall Council. However, under this Labour government, the Council received its highest funding increase since austerity last year and will benefit from this Government’s fair funding review and the stability of a 3-year settlement this April. Public green spaces, like the Beacon, need proper waste facilities, and residents already pay Cornwall Council for services like bin emptying. It is not fair to try to transfer that responsibility to town councils with no funding to cover it. I have written to Cornwall Council to ask them to reconsider this decision and to continue servicing at least the key bins in public spaces such as parks, green spaces, playgrounds and busy thoroughfares.

This summer, I launched a parliamentary petition to highlight the need for a swimming pool in Falmouth. The Falmouth & Penryn area is the only community in Cornwall without a pool. The nearest 25-metre pool is over half an hour away, leaving children and families with no local place to learn to swim. Local primary schools have reported a sharp drop in Year 6 children confidently swimming 25 metres, which is a worrying trend for a coastal town like Falmouth. Swimming is important for health, safety, and community. The petition had to be signed in person (parliamentary rules!), and we gathered 5,754 signatures. Presenting the enormous stack of signatures to the Deputy Speaker on 5 November caught the Deputy Speaker's attention. The Government recently announced £400 million for grassroots sports, and I’ve been pushing for some of this to be used for swimming pools, potentially alongside private sector match funding. On 27 November, I raised the issue again in Business Questions and will be meeting the minister to discuss further. While I am your MP I will keep fighting for this pool and more facilities for Falmouth & Truro.

A lot is happening with buses in Cornwall. Buses are a real lifeline for people in rural areas. When routes are cut or become unreliable, it creates barriers to work, study, medical appointments, and social connections. I was really concerned to hear that First Bus will withdraw all its services in Cornwall from February 2026. I have contacted Cornwall Council, First Bus, Go Cornwall, Falmouth University and the union representing workers. My priority is ensuring a seamless continuation of routes so people can still get to where they need to be, while supporting staff who are facing uncertainty so close to Christmas. I welcome Go Cornwall’s readiness to step in and work alongside Cornwall Council to design a revised network, and I will keep working closely to ensure a smooth handover. The Government has announced that Cornwall will join a bus franchising pilot, allocating £500,000   to Cornwall Council to design a more reliable network that works for our rural area long-term. It comes ahead of the Government’s Bus Service Bill, which will tighten rules on cancelling vital socially necessary routes. I was also glad to hear in the Budget that there will be an extension of the £3 Bus Fare Cap to keep bus travel affordable and support connectivity, especially in rural areas like ours.

The Minister for Industry, Chris McDonald MP, recently visited Cornwall to launch the Government’s new Critical Minerals Strategy  and highlight Cornwall’s role in domestic mineral production. The Minister was taken on a whistle-stop tour of Camborne School of Mines, the University of Exeter, Falmouth Docks, Cornish Lithium, British Lithium and Cornish Metals Inc by Cornwall’s Labour MPs.   With lithium, tin and tungsten essential to everything from renewable energy and transport to communications and defence,   Cornwall’s rich granite bedrock places our region at the heart of a cleaner, more resilient future. The Minister met the teams reviving Cornwall’s mining heritage, toured the South Crofty water treatment plant, saw pilot boat operations, and heard my bid to reopen the docks’ railway to transport minerals worldwide. He also viewed cutting-edge lithium-extraction technology and world-class teaching at the School of Mines. Backed by £50 million, the strategy aims to strengthen UK supply chains, support local projects, and help meet 10% of national critical mineral demand and 20% through recycling by 2035. This holds potential for thousands of jobs across Cornwall!

The recent Budget revealed a huge investment for Cornwall with a £30 million Kernow Industrial Growth Fund. This is fantastic news as the fund will help unlock the enormous potential we already have in critical minerals, renewable energy, and marine innovation, among other sectors. By backing local infrastructure, research, and supply chains, it will attract new investment, create skilled jobs, and strengthen the industries that will power our future economy. Cornwall is at the forefront of emerging high-value industries, including domestic lithium production, and with this investment, we can make sure opportunities are felt in communities across Cornwall. AND… Truro was also mentioned by Rachel Reeves in the Budget! Funding was confirmed for an upgrade to Truro Health Park as part of a major investment in Neighbourhood Health Centres across the country. This money will upgrade and refurbish Truro Health Park to bring more under one roof, such as diagnostics and treatment like transfusion and dialysis, closer to the community. This will relieve pressure on Treliske and improve access to appointments for people in Truro & Falmouth. This is part of the Government’s wider plan to reduce NHS waiting times and bring care closer to home and more services under one roof. Cornwall is already leading the way with new Neighbourhood Health Teams, and upgrading Truro Health Park will make it easier for people to get the help they need in their own communities.