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MP’s UPDATE FOR RESIDENTS
February 2021
RUTH CADBURY MP
You can find previous reports of my work on my web site; www.ruthcadbury.co.uk I also report regularly on my Facebook page and via Twitter and Instagram @RuthCadbury. You can see full details of my questions and speeches in Parliament, and get Regular updates about my Parliamentary activities on TheyWorkForYou in Hansard and on YouTube
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See my special Coronavirus Web-page for information on
local and national services, help-lines and volunteering;
and to sign up for Hounslow Council’s daily updates.
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January was yet another busy month for my team and I, like most people apart from essential front-line workers, none of us have left home (in my case, occasionally going out for a run if I can face the cold and rain).
The vaccination program is the one aspect of the Covid response that the Government have more or less got right, but only because they have put the programme fully in the hands of the NHS working closely with local councils. If only they had done the same with Testing, Track &Trace, and PPE procurement, we perhaps wouldn’t have the highest per head death rate in the world by now.
I met the Director and Medical Director of West Middlesex Hospital, and expressed my thanks to all who work there for what they do. West Mid has coped better than some (no ambulances with patients waiting to admit to A&E). However the hospital is stretched to the limit, staff are tired and too much important non-Covid work has stopped
The inauguration of Joe Biden and Kamala Harris was a bright point in January too, and we all hope that the US will have a progressive, international focus now, and particularly have a positive approach to climate change and COP26.
Victory Against BA Fire & Rehire: It’s good to report that Unite secured a deal, subject to a ballot by members, to end the long-running dispute over British Airway's plans to "fire and rehire" over 800 Cargo staff. Unite credited those of us who have raised the issues in Parliament and also on social media, in being critical to getting BA back to the negotiation table.
The funding of Under 5s Nurseries is in crisis due to incomprehensible funding decisions by the Government. This is affecting those run as businesses and nursery classes in primary schools. I arranged for representatives of both types to meet Labour’s Shadow Under 5s Minister, Tulip Siddiq to discuss their concerns.
I’ve also met more representatives of local businesses badly affected by the lockdowns such as Colliers Launches. Because they have no property with a Rateable Value (their business premises floats on the Thames) they are ineligible for a business grant. I have written to Hounslow and the Chancellor about this inequity to try to help them.
South West Railways committed to retaining a service for key workers, as they cut the service during this lockdown. However they have gone against this and removed the early morning trains on the Hounslow loop into Waterloo which many construction and shift workers rely on, and meaning the first trains that do run are too full for comfort. I have written to SWR to complain about this.
Holocaust Memorial Day was commemorated in Hounslow and nationally with moving events including testimonies with Holocaust Survivors, and I put a candle in my window at 8pm on 27th January.
MOGDEN SEWAGE FLOWING IN THE STREETS On 29th January residents in a small area in Isleworth found their homes, gardens and streets filled with foul water as the Duke of Northumberland River suddenly rose and breached its banks, which also affected St Johns Rec and Silverhall Gardens. The Guardian story is here I am seeking full compensation by Thames Water for the damage caused to residents' properties. I have met Thames Water and the Environment Agency and asked some serious questions about how they will prevent another entirely avoidable incident from happening again.
Photo: courtesy of the King family.
IN THE COMMONS (well – at my desk at home, on video link to the Chamber!)
- At PMQs I told the PM that the Government are too slow to act on key issues like testing, financial support and schools ,and urged him to change his leadership style
- In the debate on Covid support I demanded the Government address the plight of the Excluded and I opposed the £20 cut in Universal Credit
- At the Statement about the Skills White Paper I asked the Government to work with FE colleges like West Thames to ensure that people can learn new skills and get training for future jobs, particularly in areas hit hard by the economic decline like ours
- In the debate on Council Tax I criticised the Government for years of funding cuts to councils like Hounslow. Hounslow has lost 80% of Government grants since 2010 . Hounslow faced a funding gap even before Covid. In the debate I mentioned how COVID has meant Hounslow has had to spend £20 million more than they received in COVID grant and how the Government has broken their promise to give local councils the support they need at this time.
- In the debate on the Environment Bill which is required now the UK has left the EU, I spoke in support of amendments requiring the need for Government to work with local authorities and across government around air pollution - and in favour of stronger regulations and controls over chemicals used in homes and manufacturing
- I had hoped to speak during the Trade Bill but time limits meant I wasn’t called. However I voted in favour of amendments that would have protected NHS data, blocked trade deals for countries committing genocide and given Parliament a role in trade negotiations
- At an Urgent Question session I urged Education Secretary Gavin Williamson to treat school leaders with respect – something that has been glaringly absent for months.
- I also wrote to Williamson regarding the lack of access to data and devices for students learning from home
- With Lillian Greenwood MP I wrote to the Transport Minister about Cycle paths alongside and around HS2
- I joined a group of London MPs in writing to Matt Hancock to ask for further data on the roll-out of vaccines and concerns over vaccine supply for those who are housebound, or street homeless
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HOW YOU CAN SUPPORT OUR COMMUNITY
Several valuable local charities have asked for help. And many thanks to readers who have donated to Watermans Arts Centre Appeal. They reached their first target but with further lockdowns and uncertainty about government support, they continue to need funds. The #SaveWatermans Emergency Appeal page is here
If you can spare money to other hard-pressed local charities please do: Hounslow Community Foodbox, Ivybridge Foodbank (run by All Souls Church, St Margaret’s), Age Hounslow, Hounslow Open Kitchen, FoodWithLove
Many charities need volunteer help to support those in need. For information about volunteering opportunities in the borough contact Hounslow Volunteering Centre
There are regular Updates about national and local information and services from Hounslow Council here.
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Printed from an email sent by Ruth Cadbury MP
London, LON W4 4AG
United Kingdom