I am proud to be able to serve the good people of Wolverhampton South West as their representative in Parliament. This is an honour which I take very seriously, and I am keen to hear from and engage with as many constituents as possible. I do this through running surveys, holding surgeries, visiting businesses and charities, and responding to emails, letters, phone calls, casework, and policy queries. I have an office in Chapel Ash, the heart of the constituency, and I try to make myself as accessible as possible. I also use my official social media channels to promote what the Government is doing to help constituents, and the work that I am carrying out as the local MP. I also use my social media accounts to celebrate achievements in our area.
As a Member of Parliament, I have a particular political viewpoint which I know not everyone will agree with. I also know that others will have their own views and opinions. I respect this. Even if I don’t agree with someone’s views, it is their right to have a different viewpoint to mine.
There are a number of ground rules that I have set for my social media channels. These have been designed to ensure that all interactions are compatible with the principles of common courtesy, respect, and good manners. Sadly, there are some who wish to abuse my social media accounts for their own purposes. I do not believe that this is right and I do not do this to others with different views to myself.
Even as an MP, I have a right to protect myself from any threats of harassment and abuse. My social media channels are my own platform, owned and curated by myself and/or select members of my team, to express my positions along with the views and positions of the Government in addition to communicating with local constituents.
I try to respond to comments on my social media channels as much as I can. I will respond a lot more on Facebook and Instagram but do rarely respond to comments on Twitter.
I will not respond to a comment that is designed to cause anger, division, abuse or hate. These platforms are not an appropriate place to raise casework issues or matters that need an in-depth response or analysis. Comments are not a substitute for emails and I won’t be able to action them, such as when I forward an email to a local partner or a Government Minister. More often than not, it is better to put your question/comment into an email to me at stuart.anderson.mp@parliament.uk
The ground rules that I have set for my social media channels are as follows.
- The primary aim of my social media accounts is to serve constituents in Wolverhampton South West. If you are identified as not living or working in the constituency, you may have your comments ignored, hidden, or removed.
- Abuse and threats of any kind will not be tolerated – even if you think that the words that you have used are mild or were posted with tongue in cheek. Any comments that my team and/or I feel are not polite or respectful may be hidden or deleted without prior notice and the account that is posting them may be blocked and reported to the social media companies and the to Police. We have a zero-tolerance policy which means that we will report all threats and abuse.
- While I welcome feedback, the comments sections of my social media channels are not to be used by opposition activists or organisations to post political views that are not compatible with Government policies. As long as they follow the rules that are set by the social media company, they should be able to create their own page or account. Likewise, comments that are intended to deflect or divert attention from the content of the main post may be removed without prior notice.
- Spamming is not tolerated. This includes persistent posting of comments across multiple posts or platforms that basically say the same thing or posting an unrelated comment to the original post. These comments will be deleted and the account that is posting them may be blocked without any prior notice.
- Advertising of any kind is not permitted and any genuine recommendations of products or services that people make in the comments are the responsibility of the person making the recommendation.
Policy Adopted: 15/12/20.