Weekly Update - 29 August |
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Dear John I hope you've had a good week so far! Here's what i've been up to over this past week. |
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This Week the Government Announced... |
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Parents, you have 3 days left to save £7,500! |
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There are only three days left for families to apply for 30 hours of government-funded childcare starting next week. Working parents in Birmingham Edgbaston using the 30 hours of government-funded childcare will save up to £7,500 a year, money that can be spent on quality family time, providing welcome relief for working people after years of cost-of-living pressures inherited from the previous government. The scheme covering children from 9 months old until they start reception will help more children be “school ready” and set them up to achieve better results in the classroom. At the same time, Labour is investing £600 million to extend the Best Start Holiday Activities and Food (HAF) programme for another three years. This will support children from lower-income families with free meals and enriching activities during school holidays. The programme – which puts over £300 a year back in parent’s pockets – helps close the development gap, boosts children’s confidence and social skills, and has already reached over half a million children in the past year. Don’t miss out on this generational offer, find out more here. |
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Faster First Midwife Appointments |
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Hundreds of thousands of new mums-to-be will now able to skip the GP to get their first midwife appointments quicker. Newly pregnant women across England can now self-refer online to start their NHS pregnancy care, ensuring the best and most personalised care for them and their baby. Most women do not need to see a GP before beginning pregnancy care with their midwife. The earlier pregnant women can access this care, the better. It is important women have control and agency over their care, and seeing a midwife quicker is crucial to that. The option of meeting with a GP will still be available for those who request it and will be encouraged for women with other health conditions. Please save this link to share with anyone you know who is newly pregnant so they can start their care as soon as possible. |
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EU deal for garden centres |
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Garden centres have long been a staple of British life – offering everything from vibrant plants and outdoor furniture to a well-earned slice of cake in the café. But behind the scenes, many face mounting pressure from post-Brexit bureaucracy that threatens to raise prices, slow down supply chains, and put jobs at risk. The government’s new agreement with the European Union includes a Sanitary and Phytosanitary (SPS) agreement, which will slash red tape on plant and food imports and smooth out border checks. This will provide a much-needed boost to garden centres and the wider horticulture industry – directly helping centres like the Birmingham Botanical Gardens. |
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Great news! The £3 bus fare cap has been extended to help families enjoy more affordable days out. Families in the West Midlands will be able to reach Warwick Castle and West Midlands Safari, amongst other attractions, for no more than £3 per single fare. The fare cap comes alongside the government’s commitment of over £1 billion to improve bus reliability, frequency and access. I hope everyone has been making the most of the summer weather before it goes and visiting the first-class attractions our region has to offer! Find out more here. |
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Queen Elizabeth Hospital Urgent & Emergency Care |
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Last Friday, I spoke to BBC Midlands Today about the Care Quality Commission report into urgent and emergency care at Queen Elizabeth Hospital, which says improvements are needed. I've written to the leadership University Hospital Birmingham Trust demanding answers on how they'll address safety concerns, cancelled operations and A&E overcrowding. |
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Investing in West Midlands Markets |
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I am delighted that West Midlands Mayor, Richard Parker, is putting the buzz back into market days with £300,000 of support. The Mayor’s market fund will breathe new life into high streets as part of his Growth Plan for our region. The £300,000 support package includes free or discounted trial stalls for new entrepreneurs, encouraging the next generation of local small-business owners. Shoppers will also benefit from the funding, with improvements to market facilities and a greater range of stalls on offer. Street markets have been the bustling heart of our towns and cities for centuries, it is right that we help our local economies to thrive. Read more here. |
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Well-led review into University Hospitals Birmingham |
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I am pleased with the big strides forward identified in the Care Quality Commission's well-led review into University Hospitals Birmingham. This is a trust which has gone from inadequate to good, so there is a lot to celebrate. Progress has been made in governance, strategy and inclusion. I'm very grateful and thankful to everybody that works across the trust in putting in the hard yards to get to where we are. However, there is still more to do. We must further reduce waiting times, and issues remain with crowding and handover delays in A&E departments. I also continue to have concerns about staff culture and the state of maternity services. I look forward to meeting with the leadership of the trust in the coming weeks to discuss how we can build on these improvements and deliver effective hospital care for staff and patients. We must continue to see rapid, swift change. Read more here. |
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On Monday, residents will be able to bring all their additional waste to be disposed of for free at the truck in North Edgbaston. 📅 Monday 1st September ⏰ 7.45am - 12.45pm 📍 Osler Street Car Park |
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Are you a talented, enthusiastic and resourceful comms and campaigns professional, who is excited about making a difference for the residents of our diverse Birmingham constituency? Then please consider applying to be my new Communications and Campaigns Officer.
I am looking for someone who is confident and skilled on social media platforms including Instagram and TikTok, who is passionate about driving impactful campaigns and coverage for the issues that matter most to the constituents of Birmingham Edgbaston.
More details about the role are available at the link here. |
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As a reminder, my regular constituency surgeries are taking a break during August, but my team and I remain available for urgent matters. Surgeries will resume in September with our usual schedule: Friday 5th September 10:30-11:30am: St. Germain's Church, City Road, B17 9LE 3:30-4:30pm: City Road Primary School (City Road Entrance), B16 0HL 5:15-6:30pm: Quinborne Centre, Ridgeacre Road, B32 2TW 7:00-8:00pm: Lordswood Girls School, Knightlow Road, B17 8QB
Thursday 11th September 10:30-11:30am: Edgbaston Community Centre, 40 Woodview Drive, B15 2HU 12:00-1:00pm: Newman University, Genners Lane, B32 3NT
As always, if you have an issue you'd like to discuss, please contact my office at 0121 392 8426 or [email protected], or through my website. Here’s 8 things the government's Plan For Change has delivered over the past two weeks: 🩺 100 Local Health Centres across the country now offer out of hours services, 12 hours a day seven days a week. ✂️£500 million of funding has been announced to unblock the planning system which will help get the homes we need built faster. 🛑 Our new UK-Iraq agreement will bolster efforts to further deter small boat arrivals. This builds on the government's groundbreaking returns agreement with France. ❌Criminals will face being barred from pubs, concerts and sports matches under new sentencing powers. Judges will be able to curtail offenders’ freedoms with driving limits; travel bans and restriction zones. 🏠Nearly 100,000 new homes have been progressed in the past year thanks to the New Homes Accelerator, as part of this government’s plans to tackle Britain’s housing crisis. 👔We’re reducing uniform costs by capping the number of branded items schools can ask parents to buy. This will save parents around £50 per year. 💉A free chickenpox vaccination will be offered for the first time to children across England on the NHS from January 2026. 🪖£70 million investment to support ambition to increase the Cadet Force by 30% by 2030, deepening opportunities for young people to have a career in the Armed Forces. |
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Preet Kaur Gill MP Member of Parliament for Birmingham Edgbaston, covering Bartley Green, Edgbaston, Harborne, North Edgbaston and Quinton Promoted by David Evans on behalf of the Labour Party, 20 Rushworth Street, London SE1 0SS |
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Follow Preet Kaur Gill MP | |
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