It has been two months since Gregory Stafford became the MP for Farnham & Bordon. Since then, he has made his debut in Parliament, set up his office, recruited a team and has been visiting residents and holding advice surgeries. 

Mr Stafford tells more in his first column for The Herald.

To have been elected as the new Member of Parliament for Farnham and Bordon is no doubt one of the greatest honours of my life. I feel humbled and privileged to be given this opportunity to represent our community in this new constituency.

I’ve spoken in Parliament to make my maiden speech and pressed the Government for answers on topics including SEND provisions, local hospitals, public transport and electric vehicles. 

Locally, I’ve held advice surgeries and visited residents in their homes. Progress is being made on key developments for the community, such as the Banking Hub in Bordon. 

It has been quite some time since our community has seen such a shift in its local political structure. 

Most MPs are afforded the simplicity of a single-county constituency. For us in Farnham and Bordon we now “enjoy”, thanks to the Boundary Commission, a more kaleidoscopic political make-up. We have two police forces, two county councils, both a borough and a district council, and several town and parish councils. 

While some may think this a bureaucratic maze, through which I am now tasked with navigating, I see it as a great opportunity to make a difference. 

With more stakeholders and passionate community advocates, I have the pleasure of bringing together decision-makers to create better ideas and improvements for our constituency. 

This unique situation demands nothing less than constant hard work. That is what I promised you during my campaign, and it is what I will now deliver for you having been elected this year as the new MP. 

When you are elected as an MP – normally in the very early hours of the morning – there is no induction or cooling off period. Straightaway, there are constituents to serve and representations to be made. 

Returning MPs can get back to their existing regimes, with a full staff, office, and system around them. As a new MP, you start with nothing. No office, no desk, no team, not even an e-mail address. 

I knew that to best represent Farnham and Bordon I needed to immediately organise my office as some pressing issues simply could not wait. 

Over the summer I secured a team, laptop, and a pass to get into Parliament. It was only last week that I was allocated a desk to sit at in a building – new to me and many of my colleagues – called Richmond House. 

There is a lot to be done. The new Labour Government’s submission to the unions and damaging decisions on housing targets, winter fuel payments and tax rises are creating uncertainty at home. 

I am going to do nothing less than fight for our community and for the values we hold so dear.