I am here to help in any way that I can. In some cases the solution to your problem might rest with another authority - not central government. For example, a housing problem will ultimately be resolved by the council or housing associations, a planning problem by the council or a criminal matter by the police. You can contact me if you feel any other authority is not responding to you, or not dealing with your problem satisfactorily. I can try to get a better outcome for you, although I can't actually order other authorities to do certain things.

You should certainly contact me on anything to do with central government's responsibilities; for example, tax and benefits, child support, the health service and other public services. You should also contact me if you have a view or question about anything being discussed in Parliament, or if you want an issue taken up.

How do I deal with your concerns?

Where your problem does involve central government, I have a number of methods available to try to resolve the matter; a letter to the relevant department or official, taking matters a stage further by writing to the Minister involved or meeting the Minister personally.

Petitioning and Campaigning

If you and other people feel strongly about a certain issue, you may decide to organise a petition to the House of Commons. The petition must be arranged in a particular format. You can obtain advice on this by writing to:

Clerk of Public Petitions
Journal Office
House of Commons
London
SW1A 0AA

MPs are often contacted by constituents campaigning on behalf of a particular cause, perhaps representing an organised pressure group. Anyone who is intending to organise a 'mass lobby' to the House of Commons must contact the Serjeant at Arms Department (020 7219 3060) well in advance.

Visiting Parliament

Guided tours of the building take place during the Summer Recess; more details are given on the Parliament website. At other times, you must contact my office to obtain a permit. Times and numbers are limited so, consequently, there is great demand for tours and you should contact me to make the necessary arrangements well in advance - two to three months ahead - and should be as flexible as possible in choice of date.

Constituents are not admitted for tours of the building unless they have made a booking through my office. Due to the limited availability of tours we are unable at present to offer tours to overseas visitors. MPs have only two tickets approximately every ten days to give to constituents for the Strangers' Gallery, so demand is very heavy. Tickets from MPs are the only way to secure entry for such popular sessions as Question Time. Tickets are not always necessary if you can visit at an off peak time. Further information in the form of a leaflet regarding gallery visits is available on request from the House of Commons Information Office and on the Parliament Internet site.