MP Newsletter #21: Melksham Hospital, The Budget, Flooding

Dear reader,

A warm welcome to the latest edition of my newsletter. If this your first time reading, thank you. My aim is to keep you as up to date as possible with just some of what I’ve been up to. 

With the budget dominating the news agenda, it’s been in the forefront of minds up in Westminster and I’ll explain a little more below about what I, and my Liberal Democrat colleagues, would like to see the Chancellor do on Wednesday. 

But there has also been time to raise other issues, including the devastating atrocities taking place in Sudan. I feel that one personally having spent time in the country with work in the early 1990’s. 

Here in the constituency, I know that the recent wet weather has raised the spectre of flooding yet again. I have written to the flooding minister ahead of this winter, and I explain that in more detail below. I have also been continuing my campaign and work to expand services at Melksham Hospital, including pushing for NHS hearing tests to take place there. 

In this edition:
🏥 Pushing for better healthcare at Melksham Hospital
💷 The Budget: backing support for pubs, restaurants & families
🌧 Flooding: holding ministers to account and pushing for fair funding
🌍 Sudan: calling out mass atrocities and demanding stronger action
🗳 Keep up with my work in Parliament
 

🏥 Fighting for Better Healthcare at Melksham Hospital

Since being elected last summer, one message has come through loud and clear - local healthcare simply isn’t keeping pace with Melksham’s growing community.

Residents tell me the same thing again and again. They face long trips to Bath for basic appointments, have difficulty accessing services without a car, and are waiting far too long to be seen. 

One of the clearest examples is hearing tests - anyone needing an NHS hearing test is currently sent all the way to the RUH or other larger hospitals. For many older residents this is stressful, costly, or simply impossible.

That’s why last week I convened a major strategic meeting at Melksham Assembly Hall, bringing together the ICB (Integrated Care Board), GPs, councillors, NHS Property Services and community groups to demand clarity and real progress.

The key issue I pushed was bringing audiology services to Melksham Hospital.

The case is strong:

• 14 other Integrated Care Boards already provide community audiology
• Community-based tests are typically 15–25% cheaper to run
• Melksham’s population is growing rapidly and expected to exceed 30,000 within a decade
• Older residents and those in rural villages face barriers to accessing distant care

At the meeting, the ICB confirmed that their new contract includes developing a community audiology pathway, and crucially, that they will now examine bringing these services to Melksham itself. This is a big step, but we must hold them to it.

We also received updates from NHS Property Services on long-awaited improvements to the hospital car park - expected to begin in early 2026 - but as I stressed, bricks and mortar mean little without the services themselves. We need a long-term plan for Melksham Hospital from the ICB, and I will keep pushing until we get one.

If you have had difficulties accessing hearing tests, I would really like to hear from you - our experiences strengthen the case for local services.

💷 The Budget: Backing a VAT Cut to Support Our Pubs & High Streets

With the budget approaching, I was proud to stand alongside my colleague Daisy Cooper MP to back the Liberal Democrats’ call for a 5% VAT cut for pubs, restaurants and entertainment venues.

The facts are stark:

• More than 1,000 pubs have closed this year
• Over half of people now say going out is unaffordable
• Many small venues are on a knife-edge

A VAT cut from 20% to 15% would boost footfall, support landlords and staff, and help families enjoy the small joys - a meal out, a visit to the cinema - that have become out of reach for too many.

The proposal would be funded by a windfall tax on big banks, expected to raise £30bn over the next five years. It’s a fair, practical way to support communities like ours without increasing borrowing.

The budget is a chance for the government to show it cares about the high street and rural towns. I hope the Chancellor listens.

🌧 Flooding: Pressing Ministers for Clarity and Fair Support

With the wetter weather upon us, many residents in Bradford on Avon, Melksham and across the constituency are deeply concerned about further flooding this winter.

I recently wrote to the Minister for Flooding, Emma Hardy MP, seeking urgent clarity on three key issues:

1. When financial support will be available for residents and businesses after floods
2. Whether the revised Property Flood Resilience funding applies equally to commercial properties
3. Ensuring that councils - who have repeatedly told me they cannot fund responses alone - are not left without government support

After Storm Bert last winter, no Flood Recovery funding was released despite severe damage in Bradford on Avon and Melksham. Many independent businesses are still struggling more than a year later.

I made it clear to the Minister that this situation is unacceptable and asked her to confirm exactly what support will be available and how it will be triggered this winter.

I also renewed my invitation for her to visit Bradford on Avon to see the situation first-hand.

My full letter has gone to the Minister and I will keep residents updated once I receive her response.

🌍 Sudan: Demanding the Government Call Atrocities What They Are

In Parliament, I pressed the Foreign Secretary directly on the unfolding atrocities in Sudan.

My question was blunt: “Why is the FCDO’s atrocity prevention team not working with the Sudan team? A minimum estimate of 60,000 people have been murdered in El Fasher. El Obeid is likely to be next, and Tawila camp is expected to be attacked on Christmas Day. The Prime Minister and the Foreign Secretary need to call it what it is - mass murder - and engage with the UAE to stop it, and end trade if it is not.”

The Foreign Secretary acknowledged the scale of the crisis and said the UK is pushing the UAE and other Quad partners to apply maximum pressure.

But warm words are not enough.

I will continue shining a light on this devastating situation. The world cannot look away from what is happening in Sudan.

 
🗳 Keep Up with My Work in Parliament

You can follow all my speaking contributions, written questions, voting record, and Early Day Motions directly on my Parliament page:

👉 View all my contributions here

Thank you, as always, for reading and for your continued support. 

Best wishes,

Brian Mathew MP

Your Lib Dem Member of Parliament for Melksham and Devizes