Overseas Trips

I take a keen interest in foreign affairs, and have visited China, one of the UK's major trading partners and a rising world power, as well as Israel, where the Middle East peace process is determined, which has major implications for global stability. I went to see first hand the issues affecting these countries in order to understand how they might affect our own country. I am grateful for the financial assistance rendered by these countries for my visits, but I was never asked to speak or lobby on their behalf. If I had been asked to speak or lobby on their behalf, I would not have done so. I always speak my own mind.

In Parliament, I asked about China-UK relations, co-operation on halting climate change, and the impact China's cheap furniture has on the UK furniture industry. I inquired into Israeli actions against the Palestianian people, and furthered my campaign with a trip to the Israeli embassy to press on them the need for policy change. I asked questions in Parliament about Gibraltar, a centre for internet gambling, at a time when UK gambling legislation was being considered.

The parliamentary rules admit that the informal nature of soliciting support for measures proposed in Parliament can be unhelpful, and they have certainly been so for me. I look forward to Parliament making recommendations for change to the rules, and once they are tightened, I will obey them fully.

I have never been asked to submit questions by foreign governments, and I have neither sought nor received lobbying payments of any kind from any foreign government at any time. I would never ask questions on behalf of a foreign government, and I would never seek or accept lobbying payment of any kind from any foreign government, or anyone else for that matter.