When writing to your Member of Parliament’s personal email address, using your own content is far more effective than simply cutting and pasting an email composed centrally.

For this reason we have included important points that we ask you to raise.

Please note that we have written to all Sussex MPs asking for their support and for them to demonstrate this support by writing to the Secretary of State for DEFRA, George Eustice. We have written to both those with coastal constituencies, to which this byelaw is most relevant, and those inland. Therefore all Sussex MPs should be aware of this pending byelaw. If you are not in Sussex an approach to your MP will have less relevance.

If you are contacting your MP though email it is best if this comes from your personal email address, which is why we have not set up a central process for this. We hope the following suggestions help you with the content of your email.

Regarding your name and postcode. MPs are focussed on the specific concerns of their constituents. You need to say clearly that you are their constituent and clarify this with where you live (postcode as a minimum) but ideally name your city, town or village.

We also have example tweets, if you wish to contact your MP on twitter.

Who is my MP?

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Example text to edit

Dear…

My name is … I am writing to you as one of your constituents (living in …(community)... at …(postcode)...) to ask you to urge the Secretary of State for the Environment, the Rt Hon George Eustice, to sign the Sussex Near Shore Trawling Byelaw as soon as possible, to protect the threatened Sussex kelp forest along 300 sq. km of Sussex coast.

The restoration of the Sussex kelp forests is important to me because: (please say why this is particularly important to you, this could be for example responding to the global biodiversity crisis, responding to the climate emergency, wave impact reduction on the West Sussex coastline, sustainable fisheries.)

Example text: Historically, kelp was abundant along the West Sussex coastline. But this important habitat has diminished over time, leaving just a few small patches and individual plants, mostly in shallow water and along the shoreline. Over time, repeated passes by trawling vessels have torn kelp from the sea floor and prevented natural regeneration. Kelp is vital for sustaining commercial fish stocks by creating nursery grounds and also protecting against coastal erosion. We know from other parts of the UK that limiting trawling can result in an increase in the abundance of sea-life by a multiple of four.

I believe that the need for this byelaw is compelling because:

Example text could be:

• Research shows that there will be a maximum of nine fishing vessels affected for part of the year by the closure, which will ban trawling within 4km of the shore, with an estimated loss in trawling income of £93,400. This will be offset by an equivalent financial gain to inshore potters and netters, who have fewer economic options than the trawlers who can adapt by fishing elsewhere

• It is estimated that the enhanced value of the ecosystem services from the protected kelp forests in Sussex will be more than £3 million per year

• One of the many benefits from the ecosystem services will be a significant 90% increase of important wildlife for the fisheries, which will spill over away from the closed zones

• It is estimated that there will be wider economic benefits in Sussex coastal erosion mitigation and enhanced local tourism and recreation because of the regeneration

• Evidence from another trawler exclusion zone in Lyme Bay in Dorset show a four-fold increase in the success of potting industries as the trawling moves further off shore

Historically, kelp was abundant along the West Sussex coastline. But this important habitat has diminished over time, leaving just a few small patches and individual plants, mostly in shallow water and along the shoreline. Over time, repeated passes by trawling vessels have torn kelp from the sea floor and prevented natural regeneration. Kelp is vital for sustaining commercial fish stocks by creating nursery grounds and also protecting against coastal erosion. We know from other parts of the UK that limiting trawling can result in an increase in the abundance of sea-life by a multiple of four.

Concluding comments:

Example text:

Once the byelaw has been signed, the kelp will have the breathing space it needs to recover. This will be a win-win scenario for Sussex, both for its people and its wildlife. Getting the byelaw signed is a positive and unprecedented action for a more sustainable Sussex.

Again, I ask you to urge the Secretary of State to sign this byelaw as soon as possible.

Yours sincerely