Wales ‘benefits’ from Kensington travel agents, Tory MP suggests

Wales benefits from travel agents in Kensington, a Tory MP has suggested.

Felicity Buchan, the Conservative Member of Parliament for the affluent London district, insisted that Kensington has “very close ties to the rest of the Union”.

In an essay Strength in Union, in which he makes the case against the countries of the UK becoming independent nation states, she suggested Wales benefits from the union because “many international visitors will come first to London and then add on a few days” in Wales.

Buchan, who was born in Fraserburgh, Scotland, and has lived in Kensington and Chelsea for more than 25 years, insisted that the “fact that I was Scottish-born was never raised as an issue at all” when she was selected as the Conservative candidate for her seat.  She added that “it may even have been seen as a positive”.

Buchan said: “Kensington has very close ties to the rest of the Union, in particular with Scotland. We are home to St Columba’s Church, Knightsbridge – the leading Church of Scotland church in London.

“Knightsbridge is also well known as a major international shopping centre, attracting shoppers from the Middle East, Asia and across the globe.

“Many of the goods sold in our stores are Scottish-made luxuries such as tweed and cashmere. It was therefore no surprise that when I worked on a project to attract international shoppers back to the UK, I worked closely with Scottish MPs as our interests were so aligned.

“Kensington is also a major centre for travel agents and many international visitors will come first to London and then add on a few days in Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland.”

‘Benefits’ 

She added: “My constituency, in other words, benefits from the Union in the same way the Union benefits from my constituency. That is why, as I have mentioned, I work closely in Parliament with colleagues from across the Union.

“In my constituency, many residents work in professional services such as banking and finance – that leads to co-operation with MPs representing Edinburgh, Glasgow and Aberdeen, which are major centres for asset management.

“Financial services are critically important to our economy, accounting for 11% of the UK’s total tax take, and we are stronger together.”