Wokingham’s member of parliament is urging constituents with any unresolved issues to get in touch.
Speaking to Wokingham Today, Clive Jones said that despite his request, no handover from the previous MP, Sir John Redwood, had taken place relating to any issues that had not been resolved prior to July’s general election.
Wokingham Today has seen an email exchange between Clive and Sir John’s office, in which he was told that all previous communications were deleted once the previous parliament was dissolved, citing data protection laws.
In response to an enquiry from Wokingham Today, a member of the press team at the House of Commons confirmed the guidance for members and their staff where the member has taken the decision to stand down at the next general election – asin the case of Sir John.
A document provided to Wokingham Today said: “In general, you should not pass on constituency casework records to another member of parliament unless the constituent has indicated they are content for this to happen
“As far in advance of the election as practicable, you should destroy records about closed cases that are not likely to be reopened, and prepare options for constituents on what they would like you to do with live cases or cases likely to be re-opened.”
Clive said: “It’s a shame that all the records were deleted, when you could have asked the resident for permission to pass the casework onto the new MP – which will have complied with data protection laws and rules.”
He added that other outgoing MPs have done exactly that, ensuring a smooth handover.
Clive is now asking for residents with issues to contact him by email at: Clive.Jones.MP@parliament.uk.
