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Great link, I will write to mine now. Any ideas what kind of thing to write and how to structure it? I've never done this kind of thing before so any help would

Great link, I will write to mine now. Any ideas what kind of thing to write and how to structure it? I've never done this kind of thing before so any help would be great :-)

andyjohnson0 13y ago
If you want to be taken seriously then keep it respectful. MPs regard themselves as representatives who use their own judgement, not delegates who have to do what their constituents tell them. Do not rant. Outline your concerns clearly and directly, request that they take some form of action, and ask them to reply to you giving their views and what action they took. Remember that the MP will expect requests to be something actionable: ask them to consider writing to the Home Secretary and/or Prime Minister, speak if the matter comes up for debate, sign an early day motion, etc. It's important to ask them to reply to you - and be prepared to follow-up if they don't. I've read that there is a lot of variation among MPs in how they deal with this kind of contact. My MP, a young-ish fairly enthusiastic Lib-Dem, is pretty good in this respect. More 'traditional' MPs may be not so good. Give them time, though. Despite the popular view, they are busy people. Also remember that MPs as individuals have essentially no power in issues relating to day-to-day foreign relations and state security. Don't expect too much. (Also, http://www.theyworkforyou.com/houserules http://www.theyworkforyou.com/houserules)
- arethuza 13y ago
  Excellent advice - particularly about making a request that is actionable and asking for a reply.
- andyhmltn 13y ago
  Thank you! In regards to them not replying: My local MP seems to take issues very seriously when written to. We had an issue a few months ago regarding my sister not being able to get to school and getting fined and she was in constant contact and helped solve the situation.
- tehwalrus 13y ago
  I emphasise, do not rant - my partner worked in an MPs office answering the mail, you don't want to fall into that category, which is still read and responded to, but which is almost never actioned/considered seriously/even read (by the MP themselves) in any way. bad signs - all caps, more than a page long, written on a typewriter, hand written in illegible writing, etc.
  - snogglethorpe 13y ago
    Wait, why is "written on a typewriter" a bad sign? There seems nothing particularly suspicious about handwriting either, though as a practical matter, legibility might be a problem...
    - tehwalrus 13y ago
      Well, there's a story behind this one. I once wrote to David Milliband (when he was foreign secretary) on the urging of Amnesty International about the upcoming international vote on the banning of cluster bombs. I wrote it on a 1920s typewriter, sealed it with wax etc, as befitting a letter to one of the holders of the four highest offices, and never got a reply (although they did succeed in banning the use of cluster munitions - good!) Later, when my partner was working for an MP, I mentioned the letter to her - and she laughed at me and said it would have been "one of those letters," because of the presentation - and that that's why I wouldn't have got a reply etc. ( I also made the mistake of writing directly to Milliband himself, and not to my MP asking him to pass it on, which is another reason I may not have got a reply.) I fear this story makes me out to be all three of hipster, lefty and (worst of all) impressed-by-authority, so I predict all the downvotes in this forum, but it explains my earlier comment, so it's probably worth it for completeness.
      - snogglethorpe 13y ago
        > she laughed at me and said it would have been "one of those letters," because of the presentation But did she mention why they think that way? On the face of it, it doesn't make a whole lot of sense...

Great link, I will write to mine now. Any ideas what kind of thing to write and how to structure it? I've never done this kind of thing before so any help would be great :-)

andyjohnson0 13y ago

If you want to be taken seriously then keep it respectful. MPs regard themselves as representatives who use their own judgement, not delegates who have to do what their constituents tell them. Do not rant. Outline your concerns clearly and directly, request that they take some form of action, and ask them to reply to you giving their views and what action they took. Remember that the MP will expect requests to be something actionable: ask them to consider writing to the Home Secretary and/or Prime Minister, speak if the matter comes up for debate, sign an early day motion, etc. It's important to ask them to reply to you - and be prepared to follow-up if they don't. I've read that there is a lot of variation among MPs in how they deal with this kind of contact. My MP, a young-ish fairly enthusiastic Lib-Dem, is pretty good in this respect. More 'traditional' MPs may be not so good. Give them time, though. Despite the popular view, they are busy people. Also remember that MPs as individuals have essentially no power in issues relating to day-to-day foreign relations and state security. Don't expect too much. (Also, http://www.theyworkforyou.com/houserules http://www.theyworkforyou.com/houserules)

arethuza 13y ago
Excellent advice - particularly about making a request that is actionable and asking for a reply.
andyhmltn 13y ago
Thank you! In regards to them not replying: My local MP seems to take issues very seriously when written to. We had an issue a few months ago regarding my sister not being able to get to school and getting fined and she was in constant contact and helped solve the situation.
tehwalrus 13y ago
I emphasise, do not rant - my partner worked in an MPs office answering the mail, you don't want to fall into that category, which is still read and responded to, but which is almost never actioned/considered seriously/even read (by the MP themselves) in any way. bad signs - all caps, more than a page long, written on a typewriter, hand written in illegible writing, etc.
- snogglethorpe 13y ago
  Wait, why is "written on a typewriter" a bad sign? There seems nothing particularly suspicious about handwriting either, though as a practical matter, legibility might be a problem...
  - tehwalrus 13y ago
    Well, there's a story behind this one. I once wrote to David Milliband (when he was foreign secretary) on the urging of Amnesty International about the upcoming international vote on the banning of cluster bombs. I wrote it on a 1920s typewriter, sealed it with wax etc, as befitting a letter to one of the holders of the four highest offices, and never got a reply (although they did succeed in banning the use of cluster munitions - good!) Later, when my partner was working for an MP, I mentioned the letter to her - and she laughed at me and said it would have been "one of those letters," because of the presentation - and that that's why I wouldn't have got a reply etc. ( I also made the mistake of writing directly to Milliband himself, and not to my MP asking him to pass it on, which is another reason I may not have got a reply.) I fear this story makes me out to be all three of hipster, lefty and (worst of all) impressed-by-authority, so I predict all the downvotes in this forum, but it explains my earlier comment, so it's probably worth it for completeness.
    - snogglethorpe 13y ago
      > she laughed at me and said it would have been "one of those letters," because of the presentation But did she mention why they think that way? On the face of it, it doesn't make a whole lot of sense...