After almost 20 years working as a barrister, I came into politics in July 2024 to serve the community I love.
Folkestone and Hythe is where my children grew up, where I served as a trustee of a local charity, and where the most beautiful coastline, sunrises and sunsets unite the community in a love for this wonderful area.
My mother worked as a care assistant her whole life, having come here from the Philippines in the 1970s. My father was an engineer from London. My parents’ values of hard work, respect and compassion drive everything I do.
Folkestone and Hythe was for so many years forgotten by Westminster. Not any longer.
As your first ever Labour MP, I will fight every day to improve your lives and be your voice in Parliament, so we can make this area the best it can be for everyone.
LATEST NEWS
Media
Times Radio Interview - 11/11/2026
Dungeness Even with Britain Remade
Debate on Establishing a Maternity Commissioner
Being interviewed at the Marsh Academy!
Times Radio 22.03.26
Today Programme ILR 20 03 26
Book a one-to-one surgery appointment
Request to attend a local coffee meeting
Send me a message
I was sorry to miss the SAS Paddle Out at Sunny Sands last weekend, but thank you to organisers for saving a spot for Nicola, a fellow sea-swimmer, to read out my statement which you can find below:
“The bathing water quality in Folkestone, Hythe and Romney Marsh is still not good enough. We are lucky that Hythe and Sandgate have excellent ratings, but it’s frustrating that Dymchurch and Littlestone still have 'poor' classifications and that here on Sunny Sands it is only “satisfactory”.
I want to say something about Dymchurch given the water ratings there. At Dymchurch, last summer’s water testing results had generally been good; but there were a few very high sewage discharges in September 2025, which kept them down in the ‘poor’ category. Despite this, Southern Water and the Environment Agency deny that sewage discharges are to blame for Dymchurch and Littlestone’s pollution problems. This to me is ridiculous, particularly as they have now agreed to upgrade the wastewater treatment works at Dymchurch – a tacit acceptance that the works were part of the problem all along.
More broadly, Southern Water has agreed to increase its investment in our District’s wastewater infrastructure to
£42 million over the next 5 years. This was in response to continuous pressure from myself the local stakeholder forum – made up of FHDC, councillors and local residents. This is very good news, because the main reason why we are seeing deteriorating bathing waters is precisely because of the long term failure of these water companies to invest in our wastewater infrastructure, and their long term extraction of profits.
I have also confronted Southern Water’s CEO, Lawrence Gosden, about the situation and the urgent need for more data to pinpoint the problems. At the moment there is only the Environment Agency testing duing May to September and is not done regularly enough. I am glad to have persuaded him to fund community water testing to improve local data using a Fluidion device. The details of this will be announced soon.
I am also using Environmental laws to force Southern Water and the Environment Agency to hand over their data about the sources of pollution – and am looking at any legal avenues forward that may help local residents.
Alongside this work, I was glad to vote for tougher national rules like the Water (Special Measures) Act 2025, which
blocks bonuses and threatens criminal sanctions for water bosses who obstruct investigations and persistently pollute our
seas. These measures are good but I believe that we must look at more radical measures like public ownership models for water. There is a reason why it is extremely rare for countries to have a fully privatised water industry- and the failures we are seeing along our coastline are proof that the current system is failing all of us.
Last of all, a huge thanks to Sandgate Parish Council and local volunteers for all of their work to get Granville Parade official bathing water status – signed off by the Water Minister on Friday! This means that the Environment Agency will need to monitor and protect that area, for the benefit of everybody. I was glad to have pushed that application, and will of course support the campaign to turn Folkestone Mermaid beach into an official bathing water as well.
Thank you everybody for coming. Your commitment and your activism continues to keep this issue on the agenda and I will continue to fight as your MP for every measure that will make our waters cleaner and safer for our community.”
#folkestone #hythe #romneymarsh #waterpollution ... See MoreSee Less
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Quite a lot going on this week, including:
🌍 Economy grew by 0.6% in the first 3 months of the year, beating forecasts and putting the UK on track to be the fastest growing economy in the G7.
📉 NHS waiting lists down by 110,000
🚑 Fastest ambulance response times in 5 years
🏥 A&E four-hour waiting times at their lowest level for 5 years
👩⚕️2,000 more GPs recruited with patient satisfaction up from 60% to 74.5%
🎯 8,500 extra mental health staff recruited three years ahead of target.
Lots done, lots more to do! ... See MoreSee Less
1 CommentsComment on Facebook
The Foremans are trapped in a horrific situation.
The latest development is deeply troubling - the family's contact with them has been cut off for more than a week.
You'll be hearing a lot more from myself and the family next week about what we need from the Gov!
#freelindsayandcraig #folkestone #hythe #romneymarsh
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'Grave concerns' as contact with Lindsay and Craig Foreman cut off
www.bbc.co.uk
Lindsay and Craig Foreman, from East Sussex, have been detained in Iran for more than a year.4 CommentsComment on Facebook
Always great to see Jon!
Sunflower House is an incredible asset to the community. The charity provides support for both young and older people including work opportunities, cheaper food and a place to just sit and have a chat.
Looking forward to being involved in future projects!
#folkestone #hythe #romneymarsh ... See MoreSee Less
1 CommentsComment on Facebook
Congratulations to The Mariner on The Stade for their British institute for Innkeeping Sustainability award!
I met with the owner Steve today who told me about how they source their food through local businesses and supply chains and have a temperature regulation system in place to prevent overconsumption of energy.
They even hold monthly chess/book clubs in their upstairs dining room - take a look at that view!
If you’re looking for a place to have your Sunday roast this week - this is it.
themarinerfolkestone.com
#Folkestone #Hythe #RomneyMarsh ... See MoreSee Less
1 CommentsComment on Facebook
CANCELLATION:
This event has now been cancelled, but please do feel free to fill out my survey so that I can know your thoughts 👉 www.tonyvaughan.co.uk/social-media-under-16/📱Debating Social Media Restrictions for Under-16s 📱
As you might know, the Government is consulting on social media restrictions for under-16s. I want to hear your thoughts!
Join me for a discussion on what limitations you think should be in place to help our young people's mental health. I strongly encourage parents and young people to attend.
The event will be on Thursday 21st May 7-8:30pm at South Kent Community Church, Folkestone, CT20 2QR (opposite Folkestone Central railway station).
See you there!
Sign up is encouraged: docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScbZKSLiWKr77jSANYqF9owaQucsh1laoWPl1pljaaEn46tWA/viewform?usp=h...
#Folkestone #Hythe #RomneyMarsh #SocialMedia ... See MoreSee Less
0 CommentsComment on Facebook
Good to be back at KAP Folkestone, which employs 65 local people including mechanic apprentices, and provides work experience opportunities for our young people.
Their sales of the new JAECOO and OMODA car brands are soaring - and I saw why. Go down and take a look at their petrol, hybrid and EV models! You’ll even get a free coffee ☕️
#Folkestone #Hythe #RomneyMarsh ... See MoreSee Less
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Delighted to see that Sandgate Granville Parade Beach is open officially as a bathing site in my constituency from today!
It is a beautiful shingle beach for swimmers and kayakers.
Am incredibly proud to represent such a stunning constituency.
www.gov.uk/government/news/13-new-bathing-sites-open-across-england-helping-communities-and-water...
#folkestone #hythe #romneymarsh ... See MoreSee Less
13 new bathing sites open across England helping communities and waterways
www.gov.uk
Designated sites include first-ever site on the River Thames in London6 CommentsComment on Facebook
We’ve got some good policies, but the scale and pace of change is not enough.
That’s been the story of the Government so far.
We need public ownership of the water industry, a large-scale social housebuilding programme and energy independence, to give just a few examples.
These are the kind of policies that can challenge and transform the status quo.
#romneymarsh #folkestone #hythe ... See MoreSee Less
19 CommentsComment on Facebook