Kodi Blois MP - 27/10/22

Alan Brown meets Canadian MP with connection to Kilmarnock

Last week (Wednesday 26th October), Alan Brown MP met a Canadian MP with a special connection to Kilmarnock.

Despite being 2,645 miles across the water, MP Kody Blois has an extraordinary association with Kilmarnock - that being his wife, Kim, who hails from the town.

Mr Blois is a 31-year-old Canadian MP for the Liberal Party and was elected in the 2019 Canadian Federal Election at the age of just 28 – he married Kim in July 2022.

Blois was part of a Canadian delegation who were visiting Westminster but personally reached out to Mr Brown in advance in the hope to meet the elected member of his wife’s hometown.

Commenting, the MP for Kilmarnock and Loudoun said:

“I was delighted to meet Kody and it was remarkable to hear that his wife, Kim, comes from Kilmarnock and his father-in-law still stays in the town - it really is a small world we live in.

“Kody told me he and Kim’s marriage took place in Cape Breton, an area with close links to Scotland and a strong traditional music scene – he even got married in a kilt!

“Unfortunately, we didn't have more time but it was good to make introductions. He told me, before becoming an MP, he was lucky enough to get a tour of Holyrood with Willie Coffey MSP. Presumably, he has always been interested in politics and that wasn't what inspired him to become an elected MP!

“We both attended a roundtable event with the Canadian delegation meeting with members of the APPG on Frozen Pensions – which I am part of as Pensions Spokesperson. Sadly, more than 125,000 UK (or dual nationals) living in Canada have had their UK pensions frozen at historical levels - even though Canada uprates the pensions of their citizens here.

He added:

“The Canadian Government have also offered the UK Government to enter into a "reciprocal arrangement' to end this unjust system. We also heard that UK nationals in the United States do receive full uprated pensions. This shows the unfairness of the current pensions policy- if you live on one side of Niagara Falls you get full assistance. On the other side, your pension is frozen relative to when you qualified for it.

“On a brighter note, I look forward to keeping in contact with Kody and hopefully will see him on future visits.”