Dear John,

Wishing you a joy-filled Easter – it’s officially Spring in Harrow! It has also been a joy to join in Holi celebrations with Harrow’s Hindu population in the past week. At the same time, this month sees some of the holiest dates in the calendars of the three Abrahamic faiths, with Eid arriving in just over a week’s time, followed soon by Passover. As we finally experience 7:30PM sunsets, the longer days are finally with us. No matter what it is you celebrate, wishing families a very restful Easter break.

Below is my newsletter covering some of my work in Parliament and locally in Harrow too – as always, through out the month, you can find regular updates from me on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram, or if you have an issue you would like to raise with me, contact me on [email protected] or 02072194243.

A NEW SEND SCHOOL FOR HARROW

I’m delighted that Harrow Council have secured a site for a SEND school - this will be a relief for many school staff, teachers and parents that have visited my surgeries and supported the campaign and many that have had to deal with years of anguish trying to secure an EHCP plan.

I was pleased the Education Secretary was willing to meet with me and Headteachers of Harrow’s two SEND schools last year - having the teachers make the case for a school was incredibly important and I believe their words have ultimately been able to exert enough pressure to get this moving.

A SEND school as well as funding to support our mainstream schools is long overdue and while I recognise the council have not yet secured the full funding for its opening in 2029, I will continue to campaign to ensure it gets the support it needs to succeed. https://www.gareththomas.org.uk/new-send-school-for-harrow/ 

I am glad too the council have acquired specifically the 265, The Ridgeway site. This success is in no small part to groups such as the West Harrow Allotment and Garden Association, Harrow in Leaf and Harrow Beekeepers who have been campaigning against the proposed overdevelopment for a number of years. I, alongside many other local residents spoke against the proposal in the public consultation a couple of years ago.

Over 25 years ago, when I was a young Councillor, I remember opposing the sale of the Ridgeway land to the Plymouth Brethren. I understand the strong feeling of betrayal felt by many residents when the Trust continued to let us down. I’m hopeful this will end up being a good site for a SEND school but there will be more work to do to secure all the funding needed and to make sure the design of the school is appropriate for the site.

GREAT BRITISH SPRING CLEAN - SOUTH HARROW

After successfully cleaning up every street in Wealdstone in 2023, the Harrow Litter Pickers group have taken on the challenge of cleaning up every street in South Harrow. It was great to join volunteers for the first weekend activity in Roxeth Park and neighbouring South Harrow roads last week.

Thousands of volunteer ‘Litter Heroes’ in Harrow and across London – as well as other parts of the nation – have been grabbing their litter-pickers as the country’s biggest mass-action environmental campaign - the Great British Spring Clean – comes to a close this weekend.

Casey Dalton, Harrow Litter Pickers lead said:

“Actively caring for where you live is something to be very proud of, we’re all just local people doing what we can to make Harrow a cleaner and brighter place! Litter picking is good fun, great exercise, and it’s nice to do something positive for the local area.”

Gareth Thomas, MP for Harrow West said:

"It’s pretty remarkable the level of rubbish that can be found in under an hour. Littering is inexcusable and everyone can help by disposing of rubbish properly. Fundamentally, I don’t think it should be up to charity alone but I know it is getting harder for Local Authorities to cope after a long decade of cuts.”

“It’s great to see residents of all ages involved in this project. Frrom primary schoolers to the retire, there is an incredible amount of work that the Harrow Litter Pickers voluntarily do to clean up streets.”

Now into its ninth year, the annual nationwide litter-picking campaign is run by environmental charity Keep Britain Tidy, supported by thousands of individuals, families, schools, local authorities, community groups and businesses who care for the environment on their doorsteps.

Last year people up and down the country came together to clean up more than 400,000 bags of litter from streets, parks, beaches and other public spaces and this year, as Keep Britain Tidy marks its 70th anniversary, the charity is hoping to beat that total.

RESPONSE TO HUNT'S BUDGET: NHS AND SCHOOLS

Schools:

This month, the Chancellor Jeremy Hunt presented the Budget. As I mentioned in Parliament, a shout-out for the wrong reasons sadly to my old primary, Pinner Park school.

Pinner Park is an excellent school but has seen a real-terms cut per pupil of £880 since the Conservatives took over in 2010, and a loss of almost £740,000 in spending power.  

It was not the norm for schools to send out donation pleas to parents when I was growing up and it certainly wasn’t the case under the last Labour Government. Yet this Government continues to underfund and under-deliver on their responsibility to schools and the nation’s children and young people.

On average, schools in Harrow West have seen an astonishing reduction in real terms since 2010 of almost £900 per pupil. Across Harrow; parents, pupils and teachers are seeing every day the impact of the school funding crisis. Schools are being pushed to the brink with staff desperately trying to plug the gaps in support from a lack of funding. You can find the impact to each school here: www.schoolcuts.org.uk

There was nothing in the Budget to deliver the level of investment that the children and young people in our schools deserve and I am calling on the Prime Minister to urgently address the funding crisis and start investing in this and future generations of young people.  

Watch a video of my speech here: https://x.com/gareththomasmp/status/1767287281461703025?s=46&t=yKk3YnQnei6FEbvYjZ4ISw

NHS:

NHS:

Our Health Service is under immense pressure too. Following the budget, I highlighted to the Chancellor, one in every seven people in England is on an NHS waiting list, which is more than ever before. That means they are putting their lives on hold, having to manage in pain and discomfort for months.

Despite the incredible efforts of staff, there are record waiting lists, lengthy waits in A&E departments and longer waiting times for cancer patients. Not surprisingly, waiting times in Northwick Park A&E have rocketed, having not met the target of seeing 95% of patients within four hours of arrival since before 2016. Given that Northwick Park has the busiest A&E department in London, clinicians have identified that a 50% expansion in intensive care beds is now essential. 

Its staff have done an impressive job in difficult circumstances but patients & their families deserve better. Investment in a new intensive care unit is urgently needed. Ministers should back the bid for a new ICU quickly and sort a plan to bring back Harrow’s Walk-In Centres and invest in social care.

Watch the video here: https://x.com/gareththomasmp/status/1767873669353685143?s=46&t=yKk3YnQnei6FEbvYjZ4ISw

Taxes rising, living standards falling, growth stalling:

The main rate of Class 1 employee NICs will be cut from 10% to 8% and the main rate of Class 4 employee NICs will be cut from 8% to 6%, from April. The Chancellor also confirmed changes to eligibility for Child Benefit. A new duty on vaping products will be introduced from October 2026 and tobacco duty will also be increased at the same time.

These measures come in the context of a rising tax burden, the highest it has been in 70 years. For every £10 that the Government are taking from families in higher tax under their plans, they are only giving £5 back. In other words, they are giving with one hand and taking twice as much with the other.

Following announcements in the Budget and in November, and council tax – which is rising in Harrow by 5% - the average family across the UK will be £870 worse off. 8 million tax-paying pensioners will also see their taxes increase by an average of £1,000.

The country has found itself acutely exposed to the pandemic, war, and the energy crisis because of the decisions of this Government. Austerity choked off investment, then Brexit without a plan, and then the economy was crashed by the 2022 mini-Budget. The UK economy fell into recession at the end of last year, and we have had the longest period of stagnation since the 1950s.

I am under no illusion about the scale of the task of rebuilding our economy. We need to change from short-termism to stability, investment and reform. There must be strong fiscal rules and robust economic institutions.

Investment is brought about by working with the private sector, so that we can lead the industries of the future through a modern industrial strategy. There needs to be a new national wealth fund to invest, alongside business, in our automotive sector, renewables-ready ports and the future of our steel industry. 

Our planning system should be reformed and we need to support working people in developing the skills that they need to thrive in the changing world of work, and make work pay with a genuine living wage and a new deal for working people.

FIRM FOUNDATION NIGHT SHELTER

Last week, I joined the excellent Firm Foundation night shelter in central Harrow. Whether you are in the comfort of your own home or returning to a home later tonight, do spare a thought for many of Harrow’s street homeless and those volunteering to support them at the brilliant Firm Foundation.

The Firm Foundation are not a “feeding programme” but a charity working to end the homelessness process for people walking through their doors. In each case, a caseworker is assigned to each person to begin the process to end their homelessness.

I have met with people that have slipped through the cracks due to business failure, people waiting with uncertainty about visas, and others struggling with substance abuse, all being supported in a warm environment by many incredible volunteers.

Details on referrals for the twice-weekly food and shower drop-in at Harrow Baptist Church can be found at www.firmfoundation.org.uk

Separately, any donations for new home supplies (towels, kettles, etc) are always welcome. As well as voluntary support or monetary donations that can be provided - as, the more social workers that can be funded, the more people they can stop being homeless.

INTER FAITH NETWORK CLOSURE

I was very sorry to see the closure of the Inter Faith Network (IFN). 

The IFN has been the UK’s principal vehicle for inter-faith dialogue since 1987 but sadly its board members confirmed this month it would close following the Government’s decision to withdraw funding. 

Many people in Harrow were actively involved with the IFN and I wrote to the Levelling Up Secretary to ask why he made the decision to withdraw the Government’s funding offer. There are still important questions that need to be answered. For example, what plans there are to make up for any loss of provision arising from this decision, what impact assessment was made and what consideration the Government has given to how it will continue to facilitate and promote understanding about and between different faith groups. 

The Government have a special responsibility to facilitate positive relationships between different faith communities. I worry that it is a mistake to be shutting down the UK’s principal vehicle for Muslim-Jewish dialogue at a time when inter-faith and multi-faith engagement is more important than ever.