April 2025
Jump into Sutton | Issue 2
What would change tomorrow if you could? I would make sure our NHS and other healthcare providers get all the funding and support they need to deliver the best possible care. We should all be so proud that in this country, when you are sick, you can get help without having to pay. But without serious investment now, I worry that our NHS is going to fall apart. St Helier Hospital - which many of you reading this will have been to - is quite literally crumbling, and the Government have just delayed giving us a new hospital building until the next decade. That’s just not good enough. I would also make education more of a national priority. Too often it gets forgotten when people talk about politics - but there is so much to do to make sure teachers are paid properly, students feel engaged with the lessons they are learning and that career opportunities are available to literally every single child who sets foot in a school. Education is the key that unlocks our future as a country - and it is the most powerful tool you have as a young person to make your own future brighter - so it deserves to be treated as a national priority. What do you think people in Sutton care about the most at the moment? I think there are two things that touch everybody’s families - the state of our NHS and the cost of living crisis. Everyone knows that our hospitals are crumbling, it takes too long to get a GP appointment and the social care system is broken. It is plain to see. The Government must fix it and I will keep fighting for a new hospital building, making sure GPs aren’t being forced to cut staff because of tax hikes, and getting funding to hospices at risk of shutting altogether. Similarly the Cost of Living Crisis is making too many people’s’ lives miserable. It is harder
What advice would you give, if I wanted to become an MP like you? Get involved in a campaign that you care about right now. It doesn’t have to be party- political, but to be a good MP, you have to have a clear idea of what you care about and what you want to change. There are many major issues facing our country and our planet - and young people have a major part to play. Find an issue that speaks to your heart and your head, and get involved in an organisation that is campaigning on it. Social media campaigning is a good start - but there is no more effective method of changing peoples’ minds and influencing policy than knocking on doors, delivering leaflets and energising your peers. Have courage, take a deep breath and remember that you can do this, I promise. As a young person even thinking about entering politics, you should know that you have as much to offer as anyone who is already an MP. Surround yourself with people who care about helping people, and helping you help people. You will make smart and wonderful friends along the way so that you’ll never be alone. As the saying goes, never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it’s the only thing that ever has. and harder to budget when the price of food in shops is going up and rents and mortgages are rocketing. People deserve a Government that will invest in our economy in a way that brings these prices down - otherwise we will continue to slide into a situation where young people will end up being worse off than their parents’ generation. That isn’t good enough.
Luke Taylor
Matthew William Ebbs and Phoebe Ellis put questions to Sutton and Cheam MP, Luke Taylor
What is the hardest part of your job as an MP?
What is the easiest part of your job as an MP?
Hearing some of the really awful situations local people are facing - whether that be living with pain because they are having to wait ages for a GP appointment, not being able to access the right SEND education for their children, or indeed living in fear of crime in our community. It’s really heartbreaking and a reminder that even though we live in a wonderful part of London, there is a lot that only the national government can fix and still lots to do to make life a bit easier.
There isn’t necessarily an easiest part - but there is a moment when it all comes together: when you finally fix a problem for somebody who has been in need of help for a long time. Speaking up for the people of Sutton and Cheam often means standing with them against organisations that just aren’t treating them with respect and dignity - so when you finally fix a major issue that they’ve been facing it is the best feeling in the world.
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07/04/2025 11:10
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