PHILIPPA WHITFORD, MEMBER OF PARLIAMENT FOR CENTRAL AYRSHIRE
This is the annual account written by Dr Philippa Whitford, Member for Central Ayrshire, for her
Parliamentary work in 2015 -2016.
THE YEAR IN SUMMARY
I was elected in May 2015 as a new Parliamentarian. In the first weeks and months following my
election, I set up my constituency office, made my maiden speech in Parliament on 2nd June, and
quickly began dealing with a significant flow of enquiries and issues from constituents.
I was appointed Health Spokesperson for the SNP Group at Westminster and a member of the
House of Commons Health Select Committee, a dual role which few MPs hold. Along with health,
my activities have mainly been focused on issues of particular importance to my constituency,
including aerospace, tourism, and Brexit, and on representing my constituents on the matters
which affect them on a daily basis.
MY PARLIAMENTARY ACTIVITIES AT WESTMINSTER
At Westminster my priorities are to represent the interests of my constituents and to question and
challenge the UK Government on the policies it adopts and how it carries out its responsibilities.
Over the year, I have been an active member of the SNP’s Westminster Group. I am member of
the SNP Group’s policy team on Social Justice, the SNP Group’s Spokesperson on Health, and sit on
the Health Select Committee.
To date, I have spoken in over 100 debates in Parliament and have made over 300 oral
contributions in the House of Commons. Along with many Health related topics, these have
covered a range of subjects, including the Rights of EU Citizens, the Space industry, Regional
Airports, Pension Inequality, Trident, the Scotland Bill, Tourism, and Conflict in the Middle East.
As a member of the House of Commons Health Select Committee, I have attended over 95% of
meetings and have taken an active part in the work of the Committee. With my background as a
surgeon, I have been able to ask many probing questions of the expert witnesses who came before
us, including challenging Government Ministers.
I have also been an active member of a number of All-Party Parliamentary Groups (APPGs)
including being Co-Chair of the Breast Cancer group and Vice Chair of the APPGs on the Visitor
Economy, Hunger in Britain and Patient Safety along with the Parliamentary Space Committee.
MY CONSTITUENCY ACTIVITIES
One of my key roles as an MP is helping to solve the cases of my constituents. My constituency
office in Irvine has a great team to help me do this whilst I am down in London and they can be
contacted by phone, email or by dropping into the office. My team and I do all we can to assist
constituents with their concerns, often raising cases directly with the UK Government as well as
with numerous other Government agencies. A large percentage of enquires relate to benefits and
welfare, but we regularly deal with other matters such as immigration, tax and pensions.
To date, my team and I have worked on 1038 constituent cases and have dealt with a further 950
enquiries. I have held regular surgeries, which I have rotated around the 3 main towns and seven
principal villages in my constituency. Trying to solve cases for constituents is similar to my previous
role as a doctor in that I hear what their problem is and then have to diagnose the underlying issue
and see if we can sort it out.
Another key role of a constituency MP is supporting the development of local business and
community organisations and, to this end, I have visited many key employers and third sector
groups in the constituency; facilitated partnerships and discussions, including the Aerospace
Cluster Group and GSK Sponsorship of the Coastwatch renovations of the Pilot House at Irvine
Harbour; and organised a number of public events, including a Brexit Breakfast for local business
and the Ayrshire Bus Users Group.
COMMENTS ON MY SPENDING DURING THE YEAR
The most significant element of the costs I incurred during the year was in employing staff in my
constituency office to support my work in representing my constituents by bringing their concerns
to the attention of the UK Government or trying to sort out issues with other Government
agencies. For the first five months, I had just two staff members whilst I settled in and worked out
the requirements for the rest of my team. I subsequently recruited two new members for the
constituency office and took on an Intern to assist me in my Westminster office. I have since
employed a further Intern over the summer period to carry out research activities and recruited a
new, permanent member of staff to work with me in London.
There are on-going costs associated with running the constituency office, e.g. for office entry,
telephones, broadband, equipment and stationery. Some costs have increased as the number of
staff working in the office and the volume of work have increased.
As a new MP, I had costs associated with setting up my office (furniture, computers etc) and taking
on staff for the first time. Given I only had a full complement of staff mid-way through the year,
my staffing costs over the year are lower than will be the case going forward.
Given the distance between my constituency and London, I incur significant costs in travelling to
attend Parliament. I always try to choose the travel method which gives best value for money,
taking account of the need for flexibility to deal with the last minute changes to Parliamentary
business. On the advice of the Parliamentary Travel Office, I therefore purchase ‘flexible fare’
tickets, which allow me to change flights at extremely short notice, including if I miss a flight due
to votes running late. I have to change flight times most weeks due to late changes to the
scheduled business at Westminster or to attend an event in the constituency. These tickets are
published as ‘business class’ despite the fact only economy class seats are available on the
Glasgow-London route.
I have also incurred costs in paying for accommodation in London where I stay Monday to
Thursday when I am at Westminster to attend sittings of Parliament.