LAST week, Forest of Dean MP Matt Bishop added his name to a letter demanding urgent action from Travelodge following a shocking case in which a woman was sexually assaulted in her hotel room.

Mr Bishop joined a cross-party group of MPs and Peers in writing to the company, raising serious concerns about how the incident was allowed to happen and what measures are in place to protect guests.

The assault, which took place at a Travelodge in Maidenhead in December 2022, saw 29-year-old Kyran Smith gain access to a woman’s room simply by providing her name and claiming to be her boyfriend.

Smith was later convicted and sentenced to seven-and-a-half years in prison. However, Mr Bishop and his parliamentary colleagues say that this case highlights wider failures in hotel security and the need for clear accountability.

In his statement accompanying the letter, Mr Bishop emphasised the importance of safety for all guests, particularly those travelling alone. “Hotels have a clear duty of care,” he said. “People must be able to trust that their privacy and safety will be protected when they check in. This is about accountability, improving safety, and making sure institutions respond properly when women experience harm.”

Mr Bishop, who represents a constituency with many families and professionals who travel frequently for work and leisure, made a point of connecting the issue to local concerns.

He noted that residents from the Forest of Dean often use hotels across the country and need to feel confident that they will be safe. “We have a responsibility to ensure that our constituents, whether visiting London, Reading, or anywhere else, are protected,” he added.

The letter requests a meeting with Travelodge’s CEO, Jo Boydell, to discuss what went wrong and what lessons have been learned.

The MPs and Peers are calling for stronger procedures to prevent unauthorised access to hotel rooms and to ensure guests are properly supported if an incident occurs. Mr Bishop stressed that this is not about blame alone, but about learning from mistakes and preventing future harm.

Travelodge has responded to the letter, confirming that an independent review of room security policies will be carried out.

Mr Bishop welcomed this response but said the review must lead to concrete changes. “Our constituents deserve reassurance that hotels take their safety seriously,” he said. “It is essential that no one else has to endure what this woman went through, and that lessons are applied across all hotel branches nationwide to prevent any repeat incidents.”

By signing the letter, Mr Bishop joined a wider effort to hold the hotel industry to account and push for meaningful improvements in safety protocols. For him, the focus is clear: protecting guests, strengthening accountability, and making sure that every hotel visitor, whether from the Forest of Dean or beyond, can trust in their safety when staying away from home.

This local perspective highlights how national issues of safety in public accommodation resonate directly with communities like Mr Bishop’s constituency, where residents expect practical measures to keep them secure.