Members of Parliament and Members of the European Parliament are elected to represent you.

Members of Parliament

Members of Parliament (MPs) are elected in the General Election, held generally every five years or so. Once elected, each MP serves in the House of Commons. The job of an MP is to represent the people of his or her constituency (constituents) in Parliament, whether or not they voted for him or her.

Many people think that their MP is there to solve all their problems for them, this is not the case. MPs are there to help only with those matters for which Parliament or central government is responsible. Problems often arise with work carried out by central government departments and your MP will be able to help you with such areas as:

• tax problems involving the Inland Revenue and Customs and Excise Departments (but not the council tax which is paid to your local authority);
• problems dealt with by the Department of Health such as hospitals and the National Health Service (but not problems with the social services department of your local authority);
• problems dealt with by the Department for Work and Pensions such as benefits, pensions and national insurance;
• problems dealt with by the Home Office such as immigration and matters such as school closures and grants which are dealt with by the Department for Education and Skills (but not day-to-day problems involving schools which are run by their governors and your local education authority).

Your MP is not there to help you in private disputes with neighbours, or employer, with family matters, or with companies which have sold you faulty goods; nor, for example, can they interfere with decisions made by courts.

Generally MP's will only deal with issues raised by their own constituents and not with issues raised by constituents of other MP's.

Members of the European Parliament

There are 78 MEPs for the UK. Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) are elected by you in the European Elections and serve for up to five years. England, Scotland and Wales have been divided into 11 Regions each electing a different number of MEPs, dependent on the number of voters in the region. North Yorkshire is included in the Yorkshire and Humber Region which elects six MEPs who represent the region as a whole rather than specific districts within it.

In addition to their growing role as legislators, MEPs approve the appointment of the European Commission, decide the EU budget with the member states, monitor spending, approve international agreements, question EU Commissioners and national Ministers, and appoint the European Ombudsman. Citizens have the right to petition the European Parliament.