I understand that the circumstances prompting a constituent to contact my office can often be stressful or upsetting, and that when constituents engage with me on social media this can be regarding issues they feel very strongly about. However, I will not tolerate unacceptable behaviour and neither will my staff.

Our office standards policy applies to communication in person, by phone or email, and over social media including in direct messages and comments.

Please note my staff and I only see constituents at my office by appointment, there is no walk-in access for security reasons.

My staff and I will not tolerate:

• Aggressive or violent behaviour or language.
• Offensive or derogatory language, especially when targeting protected characteristics including race, gender or sexuality.
• Unreasonably frequent or demanding contact, especially on the same issue or when a timeframe to deal with a query has been set out.
• Insisting on speaking to me or an alternative member of staff when this is not appropriate or possible.
• Continuing to demand action when we have done all we can to resolve an issue.
• Sharing of staff personal information or attempting to contact staff on personal accounts.
• Non-consensual recording and/or publishing of interactions with me or my staff.
• Misleading or false information being published about me, my staff, or our activities.

Based on this policy, we reserve the right to give verbal or written warnings to constituents and, if necessary, terminate communication. We also reserve the right to block social media accounts or remove comments if their conduct violates the above guidance and does not contribute to constructive debate.

We will deal with incidents on a case-by-case basis and reserve the right to make decisions based on context and the experience of our staff.

Where applicable, we of course aim to provide reasonable adjustments to constituents who may struggle to express themselves or communicate clearly. This may include using particular methods of communication, facilitating translation, or providing clear warnings when conduct approaches violating our policy.