MP’s UPDATE FOR RESIDENTS - May  2021

 

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

See my special Coronavirus Web-page for information on

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COMMONS UPDATE

The last month has exposed just how unsuited Boris Johnson is to the role of PM; from dealing with the aftermath of Brexit to delaying lockdown decisions, to now routinely telling mistruths to Parliament and in the media without correction. His Government has given £bns of taxpayers’ money to friends whether or not they can deliver equipment for Covid patients. There was a long silence in the Chamber at PMQs after I asked the PM when he last spoke to David Cameron (in the context of the Greensill debacle). Johnson himself has little care for those who have died of Covid and their loved ones, judging by his “Let the Bodies Pile High in their Thousands” remark.  He seems oblivious of the reason that all donations to political parties and politicians must be declared, whether it’s for leaflets, wallpaper or even (as we now learn) to help him out with the cost of a nanny for his baby son.  I have met a number of regular Tory voters on the doorstep who tell me they cannot vote Conservative while Johnson is still their leader.  Those who have worked with Johnson at the Spectator, in London’s City Hall, and since he has been in government, know his faults. And every week at PMQs Keir Starmer shows the nation he is head and shoulders above Johnson.

 

THE FINANCE BILL: Covid19 has caused a crisis not only in health, but in jobs and the economy that is far from over.  So the Finance Bill, along with March’s budget, should have focused on supporting families, securing jobs and backing struggling businesses as the country emerges from the impact of the pandemic. Instead the bill takes a hammer blow to family finances, as it freezes the income tax personal allowance, which mean half the country will pay more tax next year.  It won’t address local Council finances, which has forced them to increase Council Tax, nor stopped the £20 per week cut in Universal Credit due to come in this autumn.  And after all they have done for us, nurses will be hit with a real-terms pay freeze.

 

Meanwhile they are letting some of the world’s tech giants and other massive companies off paying tax altogether through the so-called “super deduction” a £25bn boost for companies.  When the Bill comes back to the Commons, Labour in Parliament will try to amend it to explicitly stop this tax break to the big firms that do not support workers’ rights and the living wage. 

 

With the support of our front bench, my speech opposing the Bill argued that it failed to support freelancers and to go after the promoters of tax avoidance such as Disguised Remuneration schemes.  Instead it was targeting ordinary working people such as NHS nurses and IT technicians who work as freelance contractors who have unwittingly been caught up in these dodgy arrangements.  Many have no choice as to how they are paid if they choose to work via an agency, or in certain sectors where freelancing is the norm.

 

Labour will address what is not in the Bill when it returns to the Commons: the opportunity to invest in better social care, new green infrastructure and the council housing that we need. In the US President Biden is moving away from tax cuts for big business, and investing in jobs and growth, and so should the UK.   We need to create jobs, improve lives, and finally start to tackle the problems that our country faces. The Conservatives have had more than ten years to do something about these challenges. The Budget and this finance bill have proved again that they are unable – or unwilling – to do so.

 

 

My other contributions in Parliament:

• Urged Government to take action to tackle the shortfall in funding for brain tumour research, on behalf of a constituent whose nephew has a brain tumour.  Only £8 million of the promised £40 million had been spent
• Spoke in a debate about Hammersmith Bridge, and raised the impact on river based businesses as well as traffic congestion in Chiswick and urged the Govt to act as Hammersmith Council does not have £146m needed to make the bridge safe
• Spoke about treatment of the Uyghurs in China and human rights abuses in Xingjian province including the appalling crimes against women. Along with MPs from across the House I called on the Government to act and consider what is happening as an act of genocide.
• I (again) called on the Treasury to provide support to aviation communities like Hounslow (+20K jobs) who dependent on the sector 
• Spoke during the “ping pong” sessions of the Fire Safety Bill and criticised the Government for not bringing forward proposals to protect leaseholders from excessive remediation costs for the failures in fire safety left by the builders of their flats. Sadly the Bill passed without these key amendment that had been supported by the Lords and about 30 Tory MPs

COMMUNITY UDPATE

Litter Pickers:  Seema Malhotra and I met with representatives of West London Litterpicking Groups from across Hounslow and Ealing, including Isleworth and Osterley groups.  We discussed legislation for a deposit scheme for recyclables, action on railway-land litter from TfL and the rail companies, and better anti-litter education in schools. 

London Elections:  This Thursday (May 6th) is your chance to vote for the Mayor of London, For A South West London Assembly member, and for a party preference in the top up lists. (There is also a by-election for Hounslow Councillors in Hounslow Heath and Cranford Wards.)

 

Polling Stations are open 7am-10pm, you don’t need your poll card to vote.  If you have a postal vote and have not had a chance to return it to the Council by Thursday, you can hand it in at any Hounslow Polling station.

In Other April News:

 

Printed from an email sent by Ruth Cadbury MP