Dear Constituent,

 

It was the first week in March that I began to feel grotty. My energy levels seemed quite low and, uncharacteristically for someone always on the go, I just wanted to rest. I was in Parliament in London, but kept my activity to a minimum and as soon as the votes had been done went straight home to bed.  At that time, Britain was reporting the Coronavirus. China had been first affected, and by this stage it was virulent across Italy and Spain. Britain, too had been reporting an uptick in cases.

 

I phoned 111 as a precaution and they suggested it wasn’t COVID-19 because there had been no reported cases in M34 (even though I explained to them I worked in SW1 and London was becoming a hot spot in the UK). Anyway the tiredness developed into classic COVID-19 symptoms a week later and so I spent the next fortnight in complete self-isolation.  I wasn’t tested so I don’t actually know for sure it was Coronavirus but it was awful, especially the sheer exhaustion and breathing problems. The ‘illness’ lasted for about 12 days, by which time the country was in lockdown. I use inverted commas because the reality is that, whilst the Coronavirus passed, the illness is still with me.

 

I’m what’s now being called a “long-termer” – yes it’s a thing. For a surprisingly large number of COVID-19 sufferers, the illness doesn’t end after two weeks. I’m on week 16 as I write this article and it’s at times debilitating for me.

 

The exhaustion comes back frequently, and to the point where just doing simple tasks around the house brings me out in a massive sweat of the type you’d get from running a marathon. I have lots of dizzy spells. I’ve never had vertigo before this. And oh, the brain fog! In a job where you have to have a razor-sharp mind, my short-term memory is shot to pieces.

 

My GP is very good and at least recognises it as a type of post-viral fatigue that’s reportedly common in many after COVID-19, but her only suggestion is to take Vitamin-D tablets. I’ve been doing that for two weeks now and it has helped a little bit (and I stress a little bit), but there’s still no light at the end of the tunnel yet.

 

The reason for writing about my experiences isn’t to garner sympathy – hey, I’m a politician, I’m used to not having much of that – but to raise awareness of the group of people called COVID Longtermers. There’s a lot of us, and studies are being done into the longterm effect Coronavirus may have on some people. And if you, like me, are several weeks into this debilitating illness, join the Facebook Group ‘Long Covid Support Group’, where there’s lots of advice, support and you’ll see you’re not alone!

 

Andrew Gwynne, MP for Denton and Reddish, has welcomed new funding to improve the condition of two schools in Reddish.

Reddish Vale High School and St Elisabeth’s Church of England Primary School have successfully secured funding from the Condition Improvement Fund.

The Condition Improvement Fund aims to address significant condition need, keeping schools safe and in good working order. This includes funding projects to address health and safety issues, building compliance and poor building condition.

In the 2020-21 round, over £434 million has been allocated to 1,476 projects at 1,243 academies, sixth form colleges and non-diocesan voluntary aided schools.

Andrew Gwynne said:

“I am delighted that Reddish Vale and St Elisabeth’s have successfully secured this funding to improve the condition of their premises; this is great news for both pupils and staff.

 

“All children and young people deserve a learning environment that is safe and suitable, and unfortunately there are still too many schools with facilities that are not fit for purpose.

 

“There are other schools across the Denton and Reddish constituency that are in desperate need of similar investment and I will continue to push for this.”

 

Andrew Gwynne, MP for Denton and Reddish, has expressed disappointment that amendments to the Finance Bill aimed at addressing injustices relating to the Loan Charge and IR35 have been voted down by the Government and is urging the Government to rethink.

The Loan Charge was introduced in the 2016 Finance Act and came int effect in 2019. It aims to tackle a type of employment tax avoidance the authorities call “disguised remuneration”, where workers were paid through a loan.

Any loans taken out in such circumstances since 1999 and still outstanding on 5 April 2019 became taxable as income in one go on that date, meaning some people were left with 20 years of tax bill due at once. Some caught up in the Loan Charge scandal were misled or coerced into being paid in this way and now face hefty repayments.

The IR35 reforms to off-payroll working rules, that will see many contractors, freelancers and locum workers classed as “deemed employees” and forced to pay extra taxes as an employee, but without receiving any of the benefits and rights of employment.

Gwynne cosigned a number of cross-party amendments to the Government’s Finance Bill to address injustices relating to the Loan Charge and IR35, but these were either not selected or voted down by the Government.

Andrew Gwynne said:

“I was really disappointed that the Government voted down our cross-party amendment to delay IR35 and the SNP amendment to review the Loan Charge.

 

“I would also have liked the more robust cross-party Loan Charge amendment which I cosigned to have been voted on and was disappointed that it wasn’t selected.

 

“These injustices are affecting thousands of people and the Loan Charge has already forced many into real hardship through no fault of their own.

 

“It’s vital that we address tax avoidance, but both of these schemes have been very poorly designed and implemented, and the Government need to urgently pause and review both.”