@tomgordonld.bsky.social
Liberal Democrat MP for Harrogate & Knaresborough
Over the past year, I’ve had the chance to learn more about military life through the Armed Forces Parliamentary Scheme.
From briefings and base visits to conversations with service personnel, it’s been a fantastic experience.
👇Here’s what I have taken from it:
Abolishing Healthwatch is a mistake that risks silencing patients & weakening NHS scrutiny.
Independent oversight is vital, especially in areas like eating disorder services, where Healthwatch has exposed failings & driven change.
I’ve written to Govt urging a rethink & the protection of advocacy.
🗣It’s taken a while, but in a few weeks, I’ll get the chance to ask the Prime Minister a question in Parliament.
💬There are many important issues to consider, but I want to hear from you – what matters most, and what should I raise with him?
✍Please send your ideas to tom.gordon.mp@parliament.uk.
Kurtis’ story shows how broken the system is. In one postcode, disabled people can use their bus pass anytime. Cross the border, and they must wait until 9:30am.
I’ve campaigned against this inequality for a year. Last month, Labour could’ve fixed it – but voted it down.
Read more:
Just sat watching the clock… I am so unbelievably ready for #TSTheLifeOfAShowgirl ❤️🔥
03.10.2025 03:45 — 👍 2 🔁 0 💬 1 📌 0I am appalled by today’s attack on a synagogue in Manchester.
My thoughts are with the victims, our emergency services and our entire Jewish community.
I have been in touch with Harrogate Synagogue and local police, and I will continue to do everything I can to support our local Jewish community.
Changes to PIP are causing fear & uncertainty for people with neurodivergent conditions, and risk pushing them further from work, not closer to it.
For many, PIP is not a luxury, but a lifeline, covering essential support.
To strip this support would not just be cruel, but counterproductive.
🚨Families have waited over a year for the new SEND school. Now NYC has named the wrong trust.
This shambles only deepens concerns about delays & failures in SEND provision.
I’ve written to Cllr Wilkinson with local councillors demanding urgent clarity. Parents deserve competence, not confusion.
🔔I’ve opened my 10,000th case on behalf of residents in Harrogate & Knaresborough.
🤝It’s a privilege to represent our community – from tackling roadworks and missed bin collections to wider local concerns.
✉My team and I are here to help so please don’t hesitate to get in touch!
🎉 We’re lucky to have charities like Artizan Café, Horticap & Henshaws College supporting people with learning disabilities.
❌But Govt hikes to National Insurance is piling on the pressure.
🚨Charities must be exempt from these hikes, before vital services shut & vulnerable people lose support.
Adoptive families are being let down & the crisis is only getting worse.
LBC’s coverage of the Adoption Support Fund highlights the reality: without lasting support, families are breaking down, and fewer are adopting.
The govt must make the fund permanent & I’ll keep up the pressure until they do.
We cannot support a mandatory digital ID that forces people to hand over private data just to go about their daily lives. It’s un-British, unnecessary, and unacceptable.
4/4.
Liberal Democrats fought against ID cards the first time when I was just a kid, and now I’ll fight them myself.
3/4
This is Blair’s failed project rebranded. It risks eroding civil liberties, would cost the public billions, and moves us in entirely the wrong direction. People want real solutions to the NHS crisis, the cost of living, and housing, not a mass surveillance infrastructure.
2/4
Time and again Labour seems to think that ID cards, digital or otherwise, are a silver bullet to fix systemic problems. They’re not.
1/4
I welcome Government plans to expand affordable childcare, but not at the expense of private and voluntary providers, who deliver most early years places.
👇With nearly a third at risk of closure from underfunding, I’ve urged Ministers to review funding and act now.
👇I’ve written to Royal Mail leadership over serious postal delays across Harrogate & Knaresborough.
🚨 From delays to entire weeks without post, Royal Mail is letting people down.
⚠️ I’ll keep the pressure on until our communities get the reliable service we deserve.
I visited Sheffield’s award-winning one-stop shop diabetes service – a great model that delivers all essential checks in one visit.
I’m calling on the Govt to roll it out in communities, incl through sports clubs.
As Chair of the APPG for Diabetes, I’ll keep pushing for accessible, joined-up care.
👏 Great to see Ed highlight the hard work we’ve been getting on with in Harrogate & Knaresborough.
💪 Proud that our campaigning is helping, alongside that of fantastic councillors, to put the Lib Dems back on the map in Yorkshire and across the North.
👇 Read more:
www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
📻 Great to speak with BBC Radio York today about Yorkshire Water.
We covered:
👷♀️ decades of underinvestment
💩 the ongoing sewage scandal
💰 the ban on water bosses bonuses and attempts to circumvent it
💧 It’s time to get tough and put customers and our rivers first.
💧I visited Yorkshire Water’s £7m Knaresborough upgrade – but it’s far too little, far too late.
⌛Years of prioritising profits over infrastructure have left our rivers polluted.
🍃We need real, long-term investment to clean up our waterways for good.
Picture of a bus stop with text overlaying where the advertising hoarding would be saying "Labour MPs voted against Fairer Travel for Disabled People.
Local Labour MPs voted against a Lib Dem plan to expand free bus travel for disabled residents.
The amendment, tabled by @tomgordonld.bsky.social, would have removed all time restrictions on disabled people using their bus passes.
www.newcastle-libdems.org.uk/news/article...
To recruit and retain the best, we must support the families who serve too.
Right now, visa rules stop many partners from working abroad - risking the loss of skilled personnel.
The Govt must act to support military families overseas and keep the Armed Forces an attractive, sustainable career.
👏 I’ve helped secure a win for adoptive families alongside Lib Dem colleagues! ASGSF funding secured for 2026-27.
📉 But funding is still down - the fight for a permanent, fair deal continues.
👀 Take a look at my record of action on the issue.
☕🍰 Had a lovely afternoon tea fundraiser with friends & supporters.
💰 The Tories have deep pockets, Reform are on the rise, we need to build our fighting fund to keep them out at the next council elections & keep our seat at the next GE.
👇 Chip in:
tomgordon.org.uk/donate
🇬🇧🤝🇪🇺 Great to speak with North Yorkshire for Europe in Harrogate yesterday.
🌍 We can’t tackle challenges like climate change or grow our economy alone.
👍 Rebuilding our relationship with our closest neighbours is essential.
From disabled bus passes to adoption support, from ITV studios to the Commons chamber – another packed day standing up for Harrogate & Knaresborough and championing liberal values.
Here’s just some of what I’ve been up to today👇
🚨Merck ditching its £1bn UK expansion must be a wake-up call for the Government.
💡While the US backs innovation, the UK is falling behind. We need a bold, cross-party life sciences strategy to attract investment and keep the UK at the forefront of global research.
Tonight Parliament failed disabled people.
🥀 Labour voted down my amendment to scrap unfair bus pass restrictions.
🌳 The Conservatives whipped their MPs to abstain.
🚌 This isn’t good enough. I won’t stop until disabled people get the fair, accessible transport they deserve.
❌Disabilities don’t start at 9:30am - and neither should disabled bus passes.
🚍Tonight MPs vote on my amendment to scrap unfair time limits. I’m urging all parties to back it and remove this barrier once and for all.
