Joining Paddlers Cleaning Up the Thames

Report back from Andy Slaughter, MP for Hammersmith and Chiswick


Andy Slaughter in Parliament with the staff of THIS

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June 5, 2026

I was pleased to join the Big Paddle Cleanup on the Thames this weekend and meet members of Chiswick Pier Canoe Club, who paddled down to Hammersmith to help clear the foreshore of rubbish, debris and plastic pollution. The Thames is one of west London's greatest assets and keeping it clean and safe requires the efforts of volunteers as well as public bodies. My thanks to everyone who took part in the cleanup and gave up their time to improve our local environment.

This week I had a visit in Parliament from local business THIS as part of lobby day for plant-based diets. It was brilliant to meet with the team and hear about their success. THIS products are now in all major supermarkets and I will be writing to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Minister in support of their 10-point plan.

The Justice Committee met to agree our next major report on the Courts and Tribunal Bill. The Bill aims to deal with the major backlog in criminal cases but is controversial as one of the proposals is to limit the right to jury trial. We also discussed the focus of our work between now and the end of the year which will include investigating child defendants and victims in the wake of recent serious cases, taking evidence from senior ministers and judges, and scrutinising new laws.

I met with local police teams to have our regular discussion addressing residents’ concerns around crime and antisocial behaviour in the area. The meeting provided an important opportunity to share updates, review recent incidents, and explore how the police can work more closely with the local community to address ongoing issues. The Addison Singers will be holding their summer concert, Voyage, on Saturday 27 June at 7.30pm at St Peter's Church on Southfield Road. The programme includes Bob Chilcott's The Voyage, alongside music by Elgar, Morten Lauridsen and others, as well as the classic Come Fly With Me. It promises to be an enjoyable evening of choral music and tickets are available through the Addison Singers website, with discounted prices for under-16s.

Best wishes,

Andy

andy@andyslaughter.com

P.S. I send a regular email newsletter to residents about local and national issues. If you would like to receive it then please email me at andy@andyslaughter.com, click this link.



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