In a Nub News Exclusive, MP for Rutland and Stamford Alicia Kearns has a Christmas message for her constituents, including reflections on the past year and hopes for 2025:

I hope you had a joyful Christmas surrounded by your family and friends. As 2024 comes to a close, the new year brings a time for reflection, but also an opportunity to look forward to the year ahead. 

The start of 2024 certainly didn't come without its challenges, greeting us with extreme weather and unprecedented flooding in the wake of Storm Henk. Visiting communities across Rutland exposed that we were locked out of the Government's support grant for farmers affected by flooding due to our size, and that we need a new Flood Resilience Scheme for us all to help mitigate such devastating floods in the future. Thanks to the Flooding Minister's Oakham meeting with our farmers from across Rutland, Harborough and South Kesteven, the national criteria for flooding support was expanded to include extreme rainfall, and criteria was also changed to allow Rutland to finally access the Farming Recovery Grant for the first time. I also held Flooding Summits with Parish Councillors in Autumn and will be doing more of this in coming months as I work to improve the resilience of our communities. 

Alicia Kearns meeting with Tallington residents affected by flooding (Photo: Alicia Kearns)

Although 2024 came with its challenges, there was also cause for optimism, including the official opening of our new Banking Hub in Oakham earlier this year. This new community asset has made five banks available to us rather than just one, and all the reviews are positive for those who continue to rely on cash and face-to-face banking. 

It was a busy April as I officially launched Rutland's Great Dementia Conversation to ensure our communities are as supportive as possible of all those living with dementia, are aware of the local support services, and to drive up our below average diagnosis rates. We held the launch with the wonderful John and Nula Suchet whose story is truly inspirational, and most recently we had national treasure Angela Rippon at The Barnsdale with a panel of national dementia experts which was a real privilege. 

Alicia Kearns opening the Great Dementia Conversation with Angela Rippon (Photo: Alicia Kearns)

Unfortunately, this was all put on hold when the Prime Minister's announcement of a General Election in July came earlier than expected for many of us (even MPs!). I would like to take this opportunity to thank all of you who took the time to speak to me while I was out knocking on doors and all of you who supported me. To have such strong support from our communities, in such overwhelmingly difficult circumstances for my party, was incredibly humbling and I am so very grateful. 

After a challenging few weeks of election campaigning (my step count went through the roof!), work beginning on the exciting new Barrowden Village Hall was wonderful news. Last year, the Barrowden Village Hall Development Group and I secured £300,000 from the Government's Community Ownership Fund, marking 5 of 5 successes we have secured locally from the fund. 

Alicia Kearns and the Barrowden Village Hall development group burying a time capsure (Photo: Alicia Kearns)

It's really wonderful to see an almost decade-long dream come to reality – here's to many more community successes in 2025! 

Nationally, Labour's Autumn Budget brought new challenges for many members of our communities. I was proud to support our Conservative Councillors to put forward a motion at Rutland County Council calling on the Government to rescind its Budget reforms to Agricultural Property Relief (APR) and Business Property Relief. Whilst it was disappointing to see some Rutland Councillors not stand by our famers, I'm proud we were the first Council to pass this motion nationally. I also delivered a letter to Number 10 opposing cuts to APR, having welcomed so many of our farmers to Parliament weeks before. 

Kearns has been very vocal in her support for the farmers following the Autumn Budget (Photo: Alicia Kearns)

In good news, we now have electric buses on both the Oakham Hopper routes and R9 service to and from Stamford thanks to our £23.7 million Levelling Up Funding. It will also be extended to the Uppingham Hopper routes in the new year, so I hope many of you will make use of the service in the coming months! This is just a small part of a much bigger project! 

Alicia at the Essendine Community Speed Watch (Photo: Alicia Kearns)

It's always a little manic on our roads as everyone rushes home for Christmas. Our own community will swell with loved ones returning, and a great deal of the country will drive past us on the A1 heading North and South. The last thing any of us need as we're doing our last-minute present dashes is the A1 getting closed due to accidents. Following the safety upgrades between Tinwell and Colsterworth I secured, I'm pleased National Highways has listened to our campaign and will be undertaking further safety upgrades on the A1 between South Witham and Little Ponton and closing up to 16 central reservation crossings along this stretch at the same time in Spring. Thank you to everyone who came to my public meeting in South Witham – the larger central reservation crossings will all be reviewed this year as well. 

Finally, I'm grateful to my wonderful team for their work this last year. Together we have resolved complex problems such as housing, abuse, or disability issues for over 2,560 residents – that's 49 people a week. On top of this, 230 residents a week have emailed asking for advice or to discuss national or local policies and I've tried to get back to everyone as quickly as I can. 

There's so much more I've been working on, such as my campaign against Rutland County Council considering moving our black bin collections to every three weeks, to the 53% increase in premises with access to gigabit broadband we now benefit from and funding boosts for local schools. My work on compensation for mass solar-affected communities, trying to get Rutland and Stamford Sound an FM licence, or my national campaign on allergy safety in schools, to better support British Nationals taken hostage, or for women illegally discharged from the military for falling pregnant. I've also been made Shadow National Security Minister, and Shadow Minister for Safeguarding and Preventing Violence Against Women and Girls, so it's been very busy working on these issues as well. 



Kearns was also awarded the 2024 Patchwork Foundation MP of the Year Award (Photo: Alicia Kearns)

As I enter my fifth year of being an MP, I would like to thank you for putting your trust in me to have the privilege of serving you. I will always do all I can to make a real difference to people's lives and ensure our wonderful little county continues to live up to our motto, 'multum in parvo' or much in little! I hope you all have a very healthy and successful 2025.