Last night I explained to Channel 4 News why I believe the PM now needs to set out a timetable for a leadership election. channel4.com/news/public-has…

Labour needs a second term to renew this country after years of Tory failure. On the current trajectory, we won’t get there because we will lose, and Farage will win. That should be nobody’s legacy. Having knocked on many doors in recent weeks – in Folkestone & Hythe, Worthing, Hastings & Rye, Thanet, Haringey, Islington – voters are frustrated with the pace of change; but they are still angry about the mistakes made by the leadership: winter fuel, benefit cuts, that LBC interview, Mandelson. Some say we will look like the Tories if we change leader. But would they have done better if they’d kept Boris in despite Partygate? Or kept Truss after she crashed the economy? We have to get on with the job we were elected to do. But we are hamstrung if we continue to be led by the personification of earlier – serious – mistakes. We must give the public a Labour leader with a clear vision, conviction and the ability to inspire if we are to stand any chance of turning things around. So I strongly believe that there must be an orderly transition of leadership well before the local elections next year. Otherwise, we are conceding defeat to Farage before we have even started.

RT @SteveReedMP: Labour is focused on helping people with the cost of living. We are capping ground rents, protecting leaseholders from un…

Today, we remember the six million Jews murdered in the Holocaust, and all victims of the Nazi regime and of genocides throughout history. As we mark Holocaust Memorial Day, we honour those who were lost, and we recommit to building a brighter future.

🚌  LOCAL BUS SERVICES 🚌: Reform-UK-run Kent County Council now has the money: it’s on them to spend the £42 million fairly and wisely to improve our local bus services. I was glad to lead a debate in Parliament yesterday on this topic where I revealed some of the responses to my Bus Survey. It was also good to hear from the Minister on how the Government will hold local councils to account for their spending decisions on buses. #KentBuses #Folkestone #Hythe #RomneyMarsh

🚌 EXTRA BUS FUNDING: What do you think KCC should spend the extra £42 million bus funding on? Fill in my bus survey below to tell me your ideas on how the Reform UK-run Kent County Council should spend the extra £42 million given to them by the Government for improving bus services in Kent. I’ll use the information that everyone submits to pressure KCC to improve local bus services in the way you want. The more of you that respond, the better the information I’ll have! tonyvaughan.co.uk/bus-servic… #buses #folkestone #hythe #romneymarsh

In July this year, Folkestone and Hythe District Council announced the shelving of the “FOLCA 1” project to turn part of the old Debenhams in Folkestone Town Centre into a much needed GP surgery. The Council said they would instead explore using “FOLCA 2” next door for this, along with other tenants. With FOLCA 2 lease negotiations between the Council and the NHS Integrated Care Board stuck in stalemate, in October I wrote to both to try to find a way forward. I will keep working with the Council and NHS to push for this to happen because the people of Folkestone need a new GP service after surgery closures in recent years and the worsening recruitment and retention crisis in our area. If the NHS is to bring healthcare out of hospitals and into the community, and to move from treating sickness to real prevention, a project like this is exactly what is needed. The Government’s NHS 10 Year Plan cannot be delivered in Folkestone without it. #Folkestone #GPCrisis #Healthcare #NHS

We need to look at other models of ownership in the water sector, like we've done with rail. #water #folkestone #hythe #romneymarsh kentonline.co.uk/folkestone/…

A massive thank you to Mr Silk and all the wonderful staff and students at Harcourt Primary School for participating in my Christmas Card Competition. I was blown away by the fantastic talent on display - but there could only be one winner… #folkestone #hythe #romneymarsh #harcourtprimary #christmas

This is a real Labour Budget to help working people in hard times rising your minimum & living wage, taking more kids out of poverty than ever before in modern UK history, bringing down energy bills and funding for new Neighbourhood Health Teams in places like Folkestone & Hythe!

The Government has announced something that will massively help commuters in #Folkestone, #Hythe and #RomneyMarsh with the cost of living. For the first time since the 90s, the Government has announced that rail fares will be frozen. I've spent a lot of my working life commuting into London, so I know how beneficial this will be. I believe that every economic policy we introduce must cut the cost of living. It has been too high for too long. Let's make Britain affordable again.

Local services in Folkestone and Hythe are on their knees and have suffered from historical funding neglect for decades. The fact is that services cost more to provide here – higher poverty, an older population, remote areas – there are a whole host of reasons. The Index of Multiple Deprivation figures that were recently released are especially shocking. I recently urged the Secretary of State for Housing and Communities to act now to address these challenges and wrote him this letter. I will continue to push relentlessly for a better deal for #Folkestone, #Hythe and #RomneyMarsh.

If nuclear power is to return to #Dungeness, the Government must make regulation work for our communities and our country. Today, the Nuclear Regulatory Taskforce has rightly called for a smarter system that protects nature and gets clean power built. Their proposed ‘alternative compliance pathway’ for habitats rules would allow new nuclear developers to meet tough environmental rules while funding nature recovery. Its proposals would pave the way for a secure nuclear future at Dungeness. This is what my constituents want. The Government must seize this opportunity and adopt the Taskforce’s proposals in full. bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c5yq… #nuclear #Dungeness #RomneyMarsh #Hythe #Folkestone @energygovuk @hmtreasury

I believe the majority of my constituents in #Folkestone #Hythe & #RomneyMarsh agree we should grant asylum to those fleeing war and persecution – provided the system is fair and managed. I spoke to one constituent, Janice, this week, who thinks that people seeking asylum should apply before they get here, not come on a small boat. I agree with her. The UK-France pilot is making this happen. It needs to be prioritized, scaled up and replicated with other EU partners. The Britain I want to live in is a welcoming, compassionate country, which values immigration - all of which requires public confidence in the border control system. Rhetoric, and harsh and expensive distractions like temporary refugee status, won't impact dangerous crossings. A relentless focus on workable solutions will. Check out my interview in The Guardian today. theguardian.com/uk-news/2025…

The root cause of the small boats challenge is Brexit. Read my article in the New Statesman on the real political dividing line on border control between Labour and Reform, and my thoughts on how we restore it. #asylum #immigration #ECHR newstatesman.com/politics/uk…

On Trans Day of Remembrance, we honour those who were killed due to transphobic violence and hate. This year being one of the worst on record. We stand with the trans community in demanding decency from those in power, and building a society that welcomes Trans people as they are

Labour must fix the asylum system - but I have two very real concerns with Mahmood's plans, writes @tonyvaughanMP lbc.co.uk/article/labour-fix…

As I said to Channel 4 yesterday, the UK isn’t a “soft touch” on asylum. UK asylum seeker benefits £49.18 per week – similar to European neighbours (£48 in Denmark) No right to work before 12 months (it’s 6 months in France, Spain, Belgium, Netherlands) UK settlement after 5 years (it’s 3 or 4 in Germany, a 10 year residence permit in France). Let’s cut out the alarmist rhetoric. It doesn’t help us explain to the public what needs to change. #channel4 #channel4news

The Prime Minister said in September that we are at a fork in the road. These asylum proposals suggest we have taken the wrong turning. The idea that recognised refugees need to be deported is wrong. We absolutely need immigration controls. And where those controls decide to grant asylum, we should welcome and integrate, not create perpetual limbo and alienation. The rhetoric around these reforms encourages the same culture of divisiveness that sees racism and abuse growing in our communities. The Government is wrong to think that reviews of safety in the person's country every few years will mean refugees can be returned at scale. That hasn't happened in Denmark. Brutal dictators tend to hang onto power. It would just move huge amounts of resource away from making our asylum system work as it should - by cutting initial decision delays and the appeals backlog, sorting out asylum accommodation, making the UK-France deal work, removing those whose claims fail etc. The Government must think again on this. theguardian.com/uk-news/2025…

It is unacceptable that Littlestone and Dymchurch beaches still have “no swim” warnings in place. Dymchurch has seen big improvements this year, which is why I wrote to the Environment Agency last month asking that they upgrade Dymchurch’s rating. Yesterday, I asked the Minister for Water and Flooding, Emma Hardy, about what the Government is doing holding water companies to account, and to upgrade our infrastructure. I will be meeting her to press the situation of our beaches next week. #beaches #folkestone #hythe #romneymarsh #cleanerseas