With this week bringing further revelations and accusations around Number 10 socialising, my view is unchanged since last week. I followed the rules, and my sympathies lie with the countless constituents who tell me they did the same – often at great emotional cost to themselves.

However, as ever more lurid stories of varying degrees of veracity come forward, another mood is starting to creep into my inbox – frustration.

This week, many dozens of constituents have written to me expressing concern that, with wall-to-wall media coverage focusing on the PM, other priorities are being overshadowed. I could not agree more that there are many other priorities that need and deserve our focus at this time, not least on the international stage.

I have been pleased to assure them that media depictions of endless watercooler plotting at Westminster are a million miles from my experience.

The business of government continues apace and, this week, Parliament has rightly been busy considering the threat posed by Russian actions against Ukraine.

I support the government’s firm line and our efforts to shore up the already strong consensus among the international community that aggressions cannot and will not be consequence-free.

As we prepare to further relax COVID restrictions and acknowledge that this has been made possible by the public’s high levels of trust in medical science, leading to robust take-up of vaccines, it is also right to be mindful of parts of the world where vaccine coverage is lagging.

Although mercifully milder than Delta, the rapid spread of the Omicron variant reminds us that global protection is necessary to minimise the chances for new variants to arise.

It was encouraging to hear the minister confirm this week that the UK met its target to donate 30 million doses to the developing world last year and that we are on course to reach 100 million by late spring.

Avoiding vaccine expiry and wastage is a core objective in determining when and where we deploy doses, so we can be confident that our vaccines are going into the arms of people that need them.

A reminder that my constituency office remains open and is situated above Chas H Baker (entrance round the corner in Brown Street). I mention it because it has been brought to my attention that domestic addresses in Brown Street have been receiving some hand-delivered mail for me.

The patience and kindness of householders in redelivering these items is apparently being sorely tested so, please, if you want to reach me, it is usually best to drop me an email or call in and make an appointment.