GOOD AFTERNOON and welcome to my South West Surrey update No.198. Plenty of fallout from last week’s Plan for Growth to consider this week plus the latest on my green spaces campaign and a preview of my big weekend run…
WHAT’S GOING ON IN WESTMINSTER
MINI-BUDGET Attention has rightly focused on the market reaction to the government’s plan to get the economy growing, and I know the response of mortgage lenders has concerned many locally. The Chancellor and the Bank of England have moved to calm the markets and we will now see the government’s Medium Term Fiscal Plan, complete with independent forecasts by the OBR, on 23rd November. Rather lost in the maelstrom was excellent news that household energy bills will be capped at £2,500, a brilliant move that will itself cut inflation by about 5%. It’s really important to focus on the trendlines and not just headlines in these situations: there was much market turbulence in reaction to Margaret Thatcher’s early reforms and I believe Liz Truss and Kwasi Kwarteng when they say last week’s announcement was just the start of a series of measures to turbo-charge the economy. That has to be the right approach if we are to pay for increasingly expensive public services like the NHS (not to mention defence spending in the face of Putin’s aggression) . But the PM and Chancellor will need to demonstrate that we can balance our books over the medium/long term not just to reassure markets but because it is a fundamental Conservative principle that you can’t spend money you do not earn.
TUT TUT TARGETS Building on my response to Therese Coffey’s first statement to Parliament as Health Secretary last week I have used my latest blogpost to explain why I am worried about the introduction of a new two week GP access target. Nobody is against faster access to GPs but it is a capacity issue which no target is going to solve. It also ducks the big reform we need in general practice which is to restore continuity of care so we can go back to people seeing their own GP, as happens very successfully at a number of surgeries now. But the problem is a wider cultural one: with so many targets (this is no 73 for GPs) the NHS cannot prioritise and ends up sinking in a morass of micromanagement which turns patients into numbers. But how do you persuade a new health secretary that whilst reaching for targets makes you feel like you’ve done something you actually change very little? Perhaps by encouraging her to read my book Zero where I go into detail about how I fell into the same trap. She has a copy on her desk…
COVID UPDATE I spoke too soon last week alas. Far from Covid being on the wane, there has been an increase in the prevalence of Covid according to the ONS with 1 in 70 people having the virus in the week ending 14th September, compared to 1 in 75 in the previous week. The dashboard data shows a similar trend over the last 7 days cases up by 12.7% and hospitalisations up by 16.9%. Deaths which obviously lag the other indicators were down by 24.3% but there is now real concern about a 'twindemic' of flu and Covid this winter - so get your jabs!
The key number remains 0300 200 1008 for anyone with pandemic related difficulties. Also please check out my full list of local groups working to support vulnerable residents.
WHAT’S GOING ON IN SOUTH WEST SURREY
MARATHON MADNESS As many of you know on Sunday I will be undertaking one of the maddest things I have ever done. At the ripe old age of 55 I have decided to do my first marathon. I have always been a runner but my idea of a run is a gentle three or four mile jog with the dog with no other runners and not a stopwatch in sight. More details of why I am a glutton for punishment in tomorrow’s Herald! It is all to raise money for the new Cancer and Surgical Innovation Centre we are trying to get built at the Royal Surrey. If you think you could help top it up for a wonderful cause, please donate here. And watch your TV screens around 4 pm on Sunday when I expect to be crawling over the finish line!
GREEN SPACES CAMPAIGN UPDATE As you hopefully know by now I have been campaigning to reduce sewage discharges into the River Wey, reduce the use of single-use plastics and to secure National Park status for the Surrey Hills Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. I have written to the new Environment Secretary, Ranil Jayawardena MP seeking his support for these and inviting him to visit South West Surrey to see for himself why they matter to us. You can read the full letter here and he has now agreed to meet me when Parliament is back next month. I also spoke to Environment Minister Richard Benyon, who has responsibility for national parks, and he has agreed to come down as well.
FARNHAM VANDALISM As I’m sure many of you will have seen, the Farnham Maltings fell victim to some terrible vandalism over the weekend. Hooligans smashed up the entrance, as well as several shop windows along Downing Street. The police are investigating and have asked anyone who has any relevant information to contact the them online or by calling 101 - quoting reference 4522010298. I will also be in Farnham on Friday to meet with them about this issue.
FRACKING Many of you have concerns about the impact of the government's decision to relax the ban on fracking - although the policy is explicit that it can only happen where there is local support. I don't expect that to have a direct impact on the Dunsfold application which does not technically count as fracking. It was regrettably allowed through on appeal despite huge opposition from me and many local residents (and me). I will be seeking a meeting with the new Levelling Up Secretary Simon Clarke at the earliest opportunity to ask why this wholly mistaken decision was made and whether it can be reversed.
LITTER PICK If you'd like to get involved in my green spaces campaign you could join me this Saturday in Godalming for a litter pick and street tidy. We’ll be meeting on the corner of Green Lane and Long Gore beside the Rajasthan restaurant (no 103 Long Gore) GU7 3TW at midday and will litter pick the immediate area. We’ll provide rubbish bags and have some high vis jackets but please bring your own if you have one. Please email me on [email protected] if you would like to join us so we have an idea of numbers.
UKRAINE UPDATE Latest stats show 1,471 Surrey sponsor households are matched with 4,264 Ukrainian guests under the Homes for Ukraine scheme - great job! If you are a Ukrainian family or are supporting a Ukrainian family, you may find it helpful to know that The National Literacy Trust is in the process of developing resources for Ukrainian families arriving in the UK. These include EAL resources to learn English, activities for Ukrainian refugees, teaching resources and more. Click here to fill out the form to receive one of their Welcome Reading Packs.
HASLEMERE – HAVANT Between Sat 22 and Sun 30 October, Network Rail will be carrying out a large programme of work on the line between Haslemere and Havant, as part of the Portsmouth Direct Upgrade. Between Monday and Friday the line will be closed between Haslemere and Havant, extending to Guildford on weekends. South Western Railway will be running rail replacement bus services throughout and there will also be minor adjustments to timetables. Full information can be found on this webpage.
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