Amber Rudd

So last Saturday I was joined by Cllr Keith Glazier and Cllr David Ampthil in Rye Town Hall. Most people are not aware of the different areas of responsibilities of the various layers of politicians that we are blessed with, so it is great to have all three in the room so every question has someone who can answer it – or can get back to them with the answer.

True, attendance was low. I can’t blame the weather for that, and it would surely be too wildly optimistic to simply say it must reflect complete satisfaction with me and the Government, but I do understand that there are many other different things to do on a Saturday morning.

And on this one we were competing not only with the Lions but with various coffee mornings and fund –raisings.

But for those of you who missed it you might be interested to know that the topic that residents were most keen to discuss were about education.

The questions were around the new Rye Studio School opening in September, the structure of Free Schools and Academies, and what more can be done to raise standards.

The new school is a really exciting innovation in Rye and it was a great opportunity to discuss the progress of our local primary and secondary schools, and the opening up through the Rye Studio School, of local opportunities to the post GCSE years.

We also discussed the issues of international aid and foreign policy.

I am committed to delivering locally for my residents, but it is also my job to represent you in Parliament for national and international matters. So I am following the events in Syria carefully.

We had a thorough discussion on the current and possible role of the UK and how we could help to end the terrible conflict. Peace is the aim, but getting there is the unknown. Could it involve arming the rebels, if we can identify the “right” ones?

This is likely to come to Parliament for a debate and a vote. I would very much appreciate the views of constituents on this, particularly those with any personal experience of the area.

Anyone wishing to share their views should email me on [email protected].