Hello and welcome to this week's edition of the Denton and Reddish weekly news! 

This week, we've seen Parliament return, had some wonderful local events and I also turned 49 (although still feel 21!).

A reminder that this weekend we've got the Denton craft fair taking place this Sunday. Free entry with 36 craft tables and a chance to shoot a netball with Team England. Scroll down the community board for more info! 

Andrew Gwynne, MP for Denton and Reddish, has said he is "gravely concerned" over new child poverty figures, as he called on the Government to do more to tackle the problem. 

New research conducted by Loughborough University in partnership with the charity End Child Poverty found that across the country, there were now 4.2 million children living in child poverty - a considerable rise since 2010. 

Across the constituency of Denton and Reddish, the research estimated that more than 6,000 children were living in poverty. This represents a rise of 5.8% since 2015. 

Gwynne has called on the Government to do more to ensure working people are paid fairly and that, alongside investment in high-quality jobs and good housing, more is done to support families through the cost-of-living crisis. 

Commenting, Andrew Gwynne said: 

"I'm gravely concerned about these figures. What they show is that child poverty has increased since 2015, and is being exacerbated because of the cost-of-living crisis. 

"For local people, it's more important than ever that the Government gets serious about tackling child poverty. 

"That means making sure people are paid fairly for a day's work, that we invest in high-quality jobs and good housing, and that as much as possible is done to support local households through the immediate cost-of-living crisis."

Andrew Gwynne, MP for Denton and Reddish, has announced that Denton will receive a new Community Diagnostics Centre.

The Centre, which will be based at Crown Point North Shopping Park, will specialise in CT scans, MRI scans, DEXA scans, Spirometry, ECG and Phlebotomy. 

The news of the new facility comes represents a victory for Gwynne, who has long called for more support to tackle local NHS waiting lists which have soared over the last 13 years. 

Nationally, it's estimated that over 7 million people across England currently find themselves on an NHS waiting list. Gwynne has been a strong supporter of Labour's plans to implement the biggest expansion of the NHS workforce in history, with more doctors, nurses and health visitors. This would be funded by the abolishment of the non-dom tax status, which sees those earning their money in the UK not paying UK taxes. 

Commenting, Andrew Gwynne said: 

"Over the last 13 years, local people have seen NHS waiting lists soar. 

"I’m therefore pleased that after years of campaigning, Denton will finally receive a Diagnostic Centre in the local community. 

"Now it’s time to give our local NHS the staff it so desperately needs."

Last Friday was peak Tameside. Well done to the organisers of the Tameside Whit Friday Brass Band Contest…  

At Denton Cricket Club, the bands were queuing up to play, the beer was flowing *and* the sun was shining.

It’s a fantastic Northern tradition. Happy #WhitFriday and well done Denton!

Last Sunday morning, Cllr Allison Gwynne and I made the most of the sunny weather and went over to the Little Owl Artisan Market in Denton.

There were fewer stalls this time because of half term holidays but still some great products to buy. Please support the traders if you can!

The next market is on July 9th.
#ShopLocal #Denton

WATCH: Last year, 66,000 cancer patients waited more than two months for their first treatment following an urgent GP referral.

The Minister talks about "making progress", but the UK now has the worst cancer survival rates in the G7.

Labour would deliver the staff and technology that the NHS is crying out for, and meet all NHS cancer targets within 5 years. That's our mission, where is his?

WATCH: This morning, we have a debate on the UK's Government's policy on Iran.

The Iranian regime is one of the biggest challenges on the world stage. They have initiated a violent crackdown on protestors and free speech domestically, whilst deepening strategic ties with Russia and engaged in hostile campaigns across the globe.

The UK Government must urgently develop a robust and coherent strategy to address these threats.

WATCH: After 13 years of Tory mismanagement and neglect, our mental health services are crumbling.

There are now 400,000 children waiting for mental health treatment, and last year adults spent 5.4 million hours in A&E waiting for emergency care.

Today, Labour has tabled a motion urging the Government to adopt it's plans to recruit thousands more mental health professionals and guarantee mental health treatment within a month.

 READ: England now has the lowest number of homes per 1,000 in Western Europe. There are 1 million people waiting for social housing.

A combination of Right to Buy mismanagement, extortionate private rents and failure to build enough social housing has broken our housing market.

In the latest Tameside Reporter, I’ve written about Labour’s plans to make safe, decent and affordable housing the norm.

Read the full piece here.