How Westminster Works: What do MPs actually do for you?

The Rundown by PoliticsHome

PoliticsHome

News, Politics

4.1 • 105 Ratings

🗓️ 11 August 2022

⏱️ 21 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

Every year MPs and their staff receive thousands of requests for help from the people they are elected to represent – ranging from everyday problems about bin collections and parking spaces, to highly sensitive pleas about immigration, medical care and crime. Former Lib Dem leader Tim Farron and dedicated caseworkers speak to PoliticsHome about the vital work their staff in offices across the length and breadth of the country do.

Presented by Alain Tolhurst, written by John Johnston, edited by Laura Silver, produced by Nick Hilton for Podot

Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0	Hello and welcome to How Westminster Works, a podcast from Politics Home that takes a deep dive into the history, quirks and peculiar practices of UK politics.
0:13.2	I'm your host Alan Tolhurst, and in this episode we'll look at the least seen but arguably most important part of an MP's job, whether they are newly elected backbencher or a senior government minister, casework.
0:26.2	Every year, MPs and their staff receive thousands of requests for help from the people they
0:30.3	are elected to represent, ranging from the everyday problems about bin collections and parking
0:34.5	spaces, the highly sensitive pleas about immigration, medical care and
0:38.3	crime. We spoke to MPs and the dedicated caseworkers that staffed their offices across the
0:43.4	length and breadth of the country to find out more about how they deal with the never-ending
0:46.7	entry of vital work. Tim Farron is a Liberal Democrat MP for Westmore and Lonsdale, a relatively
0:53.2	rural constituency in Cumbria, with a population of around 84 Westmore and Lonsdale, a relatively rural constituency
0:54.2	in Cumbria, with a population of around 84,000.
0:57.7	When we speak, he's celebrating his team's achievement of completing their 10,000th piece of
1:01.2	casework in just 12 months, and despite much of his time in Westminster being taken up with
1:05.7	making speeches and comments debates, attending meetings and voting on legislation, he still
1:10.2	views casework as one of his
1:11.4	top priorities.
1:15.1	I think it probably differs MP to MP. To me, it's probably the number one issue, or certainly
1:22.1	is in my top two or three, because I think serving your community is the main calling from my perspective
1:29.0	as a member of parliament. And that means being their advocate, their voice, using the resources
1:34.6	and the access that you've got to get outcomes for people that are good. And, you know,
1:41.4	so a large chunk of this morning being taken up with supporting one young homeless person with multiple needs.
1:50.4	And here we are on the brink of a bank holiday and trying to get through to services that are largely closed.
1:58.7	So it takes them an awful lot of time.
	...

Please login to see the full transcript.

Previous episode | Next episode

Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from PoliticsHome, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.

Generated transcripts are the property of PoliticsHome and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.