WHILST our MP feels honoured yet again on her recent appointment it was in July 2014 (when she last was made a PPS) that I wrote to you with the following quote from Ms Nokes’ favoured Wikipedia: A PPS must avoid “associating themselves with recommendations critical of, or embarrassing to the government”, and “A Parliamentary Private Secretary (PPS) is a thankless job. Despite having risen to the rank of MP, those with governmental ambitions will need to pay their dues once more – as a bag carrier.”

Last week readers were told that she has yet to make up her mind on how she will vote in the expected referendum on our membership of the European Union.

Before then though, in early May, we are to go to the polls to elect a new Police & Crime Commissioner.

Our MP was at the selection meeting in November when the Tories chose Michael Lane from Gosport to be their chosen candidate for the post.

He has to be the odds on favourite to win as the Tories will surely have learned lessons from the fiasco of 2012 when they chose the very unsuitable Michael Mates who lost so spectacularly on the second count.

However, we have been told that the current incumbent is going to select a new Chief Constable to be appointed just weeks before the P&CC election.

Whilst this is perfectly allowable surely Hampshire should follow Surrey’s lead and let the Deputy CC hold the fort until such time as the new P&CC’s first task in office is to make his or her choice of Chief Constable.

Would our MP (who must now, under the Tory rules, support Michael Lane) give us her views on this and perhaps the other MPs throughout Hampshire and the Isle of Wight should be asking for this to be addressed as a matter of some urgency?

Rod Brayshaw

Romsey