AS we begin 2026, I’m incredibly pleased to share some major local news, as this week I formally launched the ‘North Cornwall Dental Action Group’, a new initiative I’ve been campaigning on for a little while, in light of the severe lack of NHS dentists here in our constituency. The group will bring together dentists, health partners, and local community groups to help tackle the NHS dentistry crisis affecting families across North Cornwall. It’s something I’ve worked on closely with residents, my team of caseworkers, and stakeholders since day one, and this is a huge and positive step forward.

One of the initial partnerships we’re exploring is with The Goods Shed in Wadebridge, which could host a dedicated clinical space for community dental care, complete with x-ray facilities and treatment chairs. This kind of local delivery model could reduce the need for people to travel long distances or go private just to access essential care. Cornwall is currently one of the worst-served areas in England for NHS dental provision, with just 38 NHS dentists per 100,000 people. That’s why this new group will also be looking at pragmatic solutions like supervised student clinics, community outreach, and can hopefully be replicated in other areas right across the Duchy. I want to thank everyone who has helped get us to this point, especially the trustees at The Goods Shed and the residents who’ve shared so many shocking dentistry stories. There’s of course much more to do in the coming months, but I’m very proud of this milestone.

The House of Commons sits again on January 5, and I’ll be heading straight back into a rather packed parliamentary schedule, including debates, question sessions, and meetings on everything from rural investment to housing, water quality and public services. Alongside that, I’ll of course be continuing my regular work here in the constituency too, with local visits to businesses, schools, holding surgeries with constituents, and spending lots of time on constituent casework with my team.

On that front, it was a pleasure to meet recently with former North Cornwall MP, Paul Tyler, in Launceston. It was great to reflect on the progress we’ve made and the challenges that still lie ahead, and I appreciated his insight and kind support.

I also recently took the opportunity in Parliament to raise an issue that I deal with all too often: domestic abuse. Many of my constituents are domestic abuse survivors, including a large number of victims of economic abuse who find themselves unable to access legal aid because of the current means test rules. On behalf of these constituents, I stood up in the House and asked the Solicitor General to consider removing this test in such cases, and was glad to receive a commitment that the matter would be raised with ministers and followed up in writing. I’ll be sure to keep the pressure on.

Finally, as we look back on 2025, it’s clear it was a year of hard-fought wins. Most recently, we saw a Government U-turn on the Family Farm Tax, a policy hundreds of local farmers and I campaigned hard to stop. It was a proud moment, and one of many I’ll carry forward into 2026.