Angela Watkinson

More about Upminster

[larger map of Upminster]

The constituency of Upminster lies within the London Borough of Havering and comprises Cranham, Emerson Park, Harold Hill, Harold Wood, Noak Hill, North Ockendon, Upminster and various surrounding areas.

A day in the life of your MP - in the constituency

Fridays are the opportunity to get out and meet people

10.00 - Visit a local school

12.00 - Meeting at the Town Hall to discuss a travellers' site

1.30 - Back to the office to start signing a week's correspondence

2.00 - Make time for a cup of tea and a roll from the baker next door

3.00 - Visit a Residential Home for elderly people

4.30 - Continue signing letters

5.00 - Advice surgery appointments with individual constituents.

7.00 - Decide what action to take to help advice surgery visitors

7.30 - Off to a constituency social event and relax a bit

A day in the life of your MP at Westminster

Like most MPs, Angela works at the House of Commons from Monday to Thursday and occasionally on Friday as well.

8.30 - In private office dealing with personal correspondence and the daily postbag.

9.00 - Shadow Education Team meeting

11.00 - Preparation for Education Questions on the floor of the House

11.30 - Prayers in the House followed by Questions

12.30 - Ministerial Statement on topical issue

1.30 - The main debate begins. MP's wishing to speak must be present for the opening speeches and must remain in the chamber until they are called to speak. Anyone wishing to speak must rise every time the previous speaker sits down and hope to 'catch Mr Speaker's eye.' They have all written letters the day before asking to be called. The Speaker has a list but MP's do not know where their name is on that list sometimes the debate runs out of time and MP's have been waiting for up to 8 hours without being called.

9am - 7pm - Committees sit during these hours to scrutinise new legislation clause by clause and to propose new amendments.

Select Committees also meet to conduct in-depth investigation and to question Government ministers. These meetings take a great deal of time in reading and preparation.

Debates also take place in a second chamber in Westminster Hall concurrently with all these activities.

Also, throughout the day, organisations and lobby groups meet with MP's to gain support for their particular cause.

There is a parliamentary group for almost every country in the world and a wide range of other subjects from Sport to Illnesses to Animal Welfare to the Choir. All these groups meet regularly too.

Angela now has special responsibility for education which involves visits to schools all over Greater London.

So many conflicting events occur during the day, that MP's have difficult choices to make in deciding where their time will be spent with best effect.

7pm - The debate concludes and voting begins. MP's vote by passing through the Division Lobbies and recording their names. Each vote takes about 20 minutes, partly because the Division Lobbies are good meeting places for conducting business with Colleagues.

There are often several votes, so MP's are unlikely to leave the building before 8.15pm. Even if they live very near, their children are likely to be in bed by the time they reach home then the early start the next morning means that they cannot take the children to school. So much for family friendly hours!

8pm - Voting over. Make time for something to eat and back to the private office to deal with everything that has happened since 10 am!

10.30pm - Leave for home. Usually with some papers to read in bed.