August / September 2025 Newsletter
This is the third of my newsletters, covering the work I have been doing on your behalf over August and September.
August is a quieter month in Parliament, due to the Summer Recess. This gives MPs the opportunity to focus more time in their constituencies and take some time off for themselves.
For me, I was still undergoing treatment for an autoimmune condition, and as a result, I was still self-isolating. I am pleased to announce that I am on a phased return and able to leave my own personal lockdown!
I went back to Parliament on the 15th September, and there will be more on my first week back later in this newsletter.
This will be a bumper edition of my newsletter to cover some of the things I have done as your MP over August and September. So please, grab a tea or a coffee, some biscuits and have a read.
NHS Dental Contract Consultation
Over July and August, the Government ran a public consultation on the NHS Dental Contract. The NHS Dental Contract is the system for how dentists, the majority of whom run their own private practices, get paid for any NHS work they do.
This system, however, has seen dentists who take on this work lose money, for certain procedures. In one extreme example, for every denture fitted on the NHS a dentist could lose £42.60. This is deeply unfair and it is little wonder why more and more dentists are going private.
I was glad to see the government begin moving on fixing the NHS dental system. However I am frustrated that this is not the bold change that Labour promised over us a year ago, when they took over.
Regardless, I wanted the government to hear directly from you, which is why I spent a lot of July and August encouraging constituents to complete the consultation. I wrote letters to constituents, social media posts, spoke on Greatest Hits Radio, wrote in our local papers and emailed people across the constituency, encouraging everyone to complete the consultation, or write to me so I could complete my own submission as your MP.
I want to thank each and everyone who contributed to the government’s consultation or wrote to me with their experience of dentistry in our area.
The consultation closed on the 19th August and so now we wait for the Government to publish the result. I am waiting to hear what the Government will do based on the feedback they received.
I will continue to push for much-needed changes to the system, to stop more dentists leaving NHS dentistry and bring back those that have left.
NHS Health Survey
Over the summer, my amazing team of Lib Dem Wiltshire and town councillors and volunteers delivered my NHS Health Survey asking for your views on the service in our part of Wiltshire.
Your responses have been phenomenal and really help to shape my priorities as your MP. My team and I are still going over the hundreds of responses that have come in.
Some top line data so far include;
These results paint a worrying picture of our local health services. That is why fixing health services remains my top priority as your MP.
If you still want to have your say, you can complete my survey online by going to:
Casework Stats
Just because Parliament is quieter over the summer, that does not mean my inbox is!
Many people share their views with me on all sorts of matters, from the environment, the cost-of-living crisis, to, of course, the state of our NHS. I deeply appreciate knowing your thoughts on these issues as they help me represent you in Parliament.
However, a significant number of people contact me because they are facing personal and often complex challenges, and they have exhausted all other options. These issues can take time to resolve, but I am determined to do all I can to support those in need.
For example, some of the cases I deal with might be from constituents who are on the brink of homelessness, or from someone who is struggling with housing associations that are failing to address severe damp and mould in their homes. A common theme is also from individuals who have not received their state pension for several years, leaving them in difficult financial problems.
Every case you send, I will always do what I can to help.
I would like to share some statistics about the issues I have been working on, on your behalf. These are just some headline statistics as I cannot share the details of individual cases. I hope this gives you some insight into some of topics I have been working on:
My Unmarked Graves Campaign
This article discusses stillbirth and the historic burial of babies in unmarked graves. It may be distressing for some readers, particularly those who have experienced baby loss.
If you need support for anything discussed in this story, The Sands National Helpline offers a safe and confidential space for anyone grieving the loss of a baby. Whether your loss happened recently or many years ago, trained staff and volunteers are there to listen and provide support whenever you need it.
Sands Helpline – 0808 164 3332 or helpline@sands.org.uk
Over recent months, I have been campaigning on behalf of one of my constituents, John from Calne.
John recently discovered that his stillborn sister, who was born in the 1960s, had been buried in an unmarked mass grave without his family’s knowledge.
Tragically, this is not an isolated case. Across the country, at least 89,000 stillborn babies are thought to have been buried in similar sites, leaving grieving families with no idea where their loved ones were laid to rest, and without a place to mourn their loss.
This practice, which dates to the late 1800s and continued as late as the 1980s, reflects a historic injustice. At that time, stillborn babies were not legally recognised as births. As a result, thousands of families were denied the dignity of knowing what happened to their child or having the chance to mark their short life.
For many, this has left a wound that has never healed.
Alongside John, and on behalf of so many families across the country, I have been campaigning for the Government to acknowledge its role in this scandal and to take meaningful action. I tabled a parliamentary motion calling for funding to be given to local authorities to establish memorials at these sites, so families have a place to visit and remember their children. I have also called for support to be provided to charities who work with bereaved parents and relatives, helping them process the grief that has too often been denied to them.
Thanks to this campaign, the Health Secretary, Wes Streeting, has agreed to meet with affected families to hear their stories and consider how best to respond. As of writing, this meeting has not yet taken place, but I will continue to push for it to happen swiftly. Families like John’s have waited long enough, and it is time they are given the recognition, compassion, and support they deserve.
I remain determined to fight for justice on this issue, for John, for his sister, and for the thousands of families who never had the chance to properly say goodbye.
Standing Up for Better Housing in Wiltshire and Beyond
Over the summer I submitted detailed evidence to Parliament’s Select Committee on Housing Conditions in England, drawing on my 20 years of experience in the construction industry and the concerns raised by many of you across Chippenham, Calne, Corsham, Lyneham, Lacock, Royal Wootton Bassett, and our villages.
Too many families are living in damp, cold, or insecure homes, be it in social housing, private rentals, or even in newly built developments. I have been pressing for action to ensure that everyone has the right to a safe, warm, and secure home.
In my submission, I called for:
- Stronger standards and enforcement so that social housing providers are held accountable when repairs are delayed, or service charges are unfair.
- Greater protection for private renters, including an end to no-fault evictions, a national landlord register, and fairer tenancy rights.
- Higher-quality new homes, with proper insulation, sustainable design, and the infrastructure to support growing communities, not just profit-driven mass developments.
- Urgent improvements to temporary and exempt accommodation, ensuring vulnerable families are not forced into unsafe or unsuitable housing far from their schools or support networks.
- Support for local councils, including the funding and powers they need to enforce standards and plan for sustainable, community-led growth.
Like you, I believe that housing must be about people, not just numbers on a target sheet. Wiltshire faces huge pressure from rising Government housing targets, but developments must be the right homes, in the right places, with the right infrastructure.
My Liberal Democrat colleagues and I will keep pressing for a housing system that puts community wellbeing, sustainability, and fairness at its heart.
Back to School - Westminster!
After spending August planning for the impending deluge of Government legislation coming this Autumn, I am glad to report that this September my team and I have hit the ground running.
On the Parliamentary front I have had a busy few weeks engaging with a number of important Bills on their return to Parliament.
The Employment Rights Bill
The start of September saw the start of the closing phases of the Employment Rights Bill. This is a large and far-reaching piece of legislation that aims to significantly upgrade workers' rights in the UK, introducing day one rights for leave, improving zero-hours contracts, strengthening sick pay, and updating industrial action rules.
The Renters Rights Bill
Another key piece of legislation that has returned to Parliament this month is the Renters’ Rights Bill. The Bill aims to reform the regulation around the private rented sector and is intended to give greater rights and protections to people renting their homes.
Armed Forces Tour
On the topic of our service personnel, I was delighted to have the opportunity to give a Parliamentary tour to some of the brave men and women from Lyneham to Calne. The few weeks of Parliamentary recess held for Party conferences are usually highly booked for tours so whilst I was unable to organise an official tour with Parliamentary Services, my Westminster team were able to give an unofficial tour of the Palace.
Liberal Democrat Conference
Following my first week back in Parliament, I attended Lib Dem Autumn Conference down in Bournemouth.
After months of self-isolating, and seeing people almost exclusively on a computer screen, it was a real joy to see friends, colleagues and organisations in person.
Lib Dem Conference is an excellent opportunity to meet with businesses and organisations that are trying to make a real difference for our country. For example, I met with LINK Access who do fantastic work ensuring communities, like Calne and Royal Wootton Bassett have access to cash.
Of course, it would not be a Lib Dem conference without policy discussions and fascinating fringe events. For my part, I was delighted to be invited to give the opening speech for the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA). In my remarks, I spoke about the scale of Britain’s housing challenge and the vital role of social housing if we are to meet demand.
While the Government pledges 1.5 million homes, the private sector alone cannot deliver – councils and housing associations must be central again. I highlighted the steep decline in social housing since the 1970s, the need for proper infrastructure and environmental safeguards, and welcomed funding to retrofit older stock and support sustainable new builds.
Above all, I stressed that good design is essential to creating real communities, cutting carbon, and improving wellbeing, because solving the housing crisis is not just about numbers, but about building homes that last.
Say No to Digital ID!
This month, Keir Starmer announced mandatory Digital ID.
I want to take this opportunity to explain why I am against a compulsory Digital ID scheme and ask you to back my petition calling on the Government to scrap these plans.
To explain, I cannot support a mandatory digital ID where people are forced to turn over their private data just to go about their daily lives. People should not be turned into criminals just because they cannot have a digital ID or choose not to.
This will be especially worrying to millions of older people, people living in poverty and disabled people – who are more likely to be digitally excluded.
Keir Starmer seems determined to lead a Government of gimmicks - that just adds to our tax bills and bureaucracy, whilst doing next to nothing to tackle channel crossings. Imagine if the Government devoted this much money and focus on getting GP waiting times down, or fixing social care, instead of pursuing the Labour Party’s decades long obsession with ID cards and more state control.
It is nonsensical and I will fight against it tooth and nail – just as the Liberal Democrats successfully did against Tony Blair’s ID cards.
Thank you to everyone who has already backed my petition calling on the Government to scrap these plans. If you have not already, join me in saying No to Labour’s Digital ID Cards, today!
In the news this month
And finally…
Thank you for taking the time to read my newsletter. As always, if there is anything I can do to help you, or if there is anything you would like to raise with me, please do not hesitate to get in touch with me on;
Email: sarah.gibson.MP@parliament.uk
Phone: 01249 736 074
Write to me: Sarah Gibson MP, House of Commons, London, SW1A 1AA
With very best wishes,
Sarah Gibson MP
Liberal Democrat Member of Parliament for Chippenham, Calne, Corsham, Lyneham, Royal Wootton Bassett and the surrounding villages.