Godalming's MP, Jeremy Hunt, has praised the way the community has come together to support one another during the coronavirus pandemic.

In a wide-ranging interview with Nub News Mr Hunt said he had been impressed with the way that people had pulled together to help out. Initiatives in Godalming during the pandemic have included the Community Store, which Mr Hunt recently visited.

He said: "It's been the great paradox of coronavirus: we have had such a great tragedy, we have had more than 100 people who have lost their lives locally to coronavirus, but at the same time we have seen such a wonderful upsurge in community spirit, and that's been very inspiring."

Parliament has now broken up for the summer, although MPs will continue to carry out work on behalf of their constituents.

"I was hoping to take a week's holiday in Italy but I'm not so sure now," he said. "We will have to see how it goes." He was referring to the government's last-minute decision to drop Spain from its quarantine exemption list. The government says it will keep the list 'under review', meaning other countries could be added to or dropped from it at short notice. There have been complaints from travellers that the hurried decision to impose a two-week lockdown on them on their return was unfair, and disruptive for those who were planning to head back to work. "I recognise it as a one-off situation where you are damned if you do and damned if you don't," he said. "I said the government should have moved faster into this lockdown, so I don't criticise the government for doing this when there is a spike in various places. It's very unfortunate but its a pandemic, and we all have to play our part." And he praised Godhelmians for reacting positively to Government instructions to lockdown in March. "We had very high levels of compliance with lockdown in Surrey when it happened. I would expect that in this area," he said. He also praised locals for largely complying with the new rules mandating the wearing of face masks in public indoor areas. "People are very sensible and they understand that this isn't just about protecting yourself, it's about protecting friends and relatives too." He defended the Government against accusations of being slow to react and 'flip-flopping' on policy on tackling the virus.

"Hindsight is a wonderful thing but you can't always predict how things will happen," he said.

"This is a totally new virus and you are never going to get everything right first time. But we do have the right strategy at this time, and I think that will give people confidence. We don't want another wave."

Mr Hunt has come under fire from local councillors for suggesting that Waverley Borough Council should be scrapped in favour of a county-wide unitary authority. The change, which has been mooted in the light of a government white paper due to be published in the autumn, would also see town and parish councils given powers to decide planning applications. Currently, district and borough councils make those decisions, although town and parish councils are consulted.

But he stood by his suggestion, telling Nub News: "Of course people in Waverley who are councillors are going to be very reluctant to abolish Waverley.

"But if we could find a way to beef up our local councils so they can take on responsibility for planning and licensing I think this is the way forward.

"I don't think we have got our planning system quite right at the moment. We need to find a better way to get a balance between people who want to get their foot on the housing ladder and finding it very hard because property is expensive locally, and the desire to protect what's special about our area.

"The best way to make those decisions is to push them out to local people."

Mr Hunt will be writing a regular column for Nub News, starting later this year.