LETTER: A clear gap between views

I couldn't agree more with Anthony Thomson ('˜Thank you Prime Minister' '“ Letters, May 5) when he says that the Remain supporting Lewes and their Leave MP should shake hands and go their separate ways.

Not only is there a clear gap between the views of our MP and many of her constituents, but there is often a disconnect between what she says in public and how she has voted in Parliament.

On her website dated March 7 it states that: “The Member of Parliament for Lewes Maria Caulfield, who is a member of the Brexit Select Committee, has emerged as one of the leading voices supporting EU nationals in Britain after her input into the Brexit Select Committee’s report entitled: “The Government’s Negotiating Objectives: The Rights of UK and EU Citizens.”

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However, on both February 8 of this year and October 19 last year, she voted in Parliament against two bills seeking to protect the rights of EU citizens to live and work in the UK.

Many EU citizens have made their home in our area – for example the most recently available government statistics (ONS 2013) show over 1,000 nationals from both the Netherlands and Germany respectively in Lewes District.

They are a vital part of our families, neighbourhoods and communities, and many have dedicated years to working in a wide range of local institutions, from NHS hospitals to schools, colleges and universities.

Surely these residents deserve the concrete support of their local MP? Saying one thing but doing another doesn’t help us trust our politicians.

Janet Hardy-Gould

Brighton Road, Lewes