MP’S UPDATE FOR BRENTFORD AND ISLEWORTH RESIDENTS OCTOBER 2022

 

YOU CAN FIND PREVIOUS REPORTS OF MY WORK ON MY WEB
SITE; WWW.RUTHCADBURY.ORG.UK [1]  I ALSO REPORT REGULARLY ON MY FACEBOOK
PAGE [2] 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 THEYWORKFORYOU
[3] (VOTES) IN HANSARD [4] (SPEECHES) AND ON YOUTUBE. [5]

IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO RAISE ISSUES WITH ME AS YOUR MP PLEASE EMAIL
ON [email protected] WITH YOUR ADDRESS, A QUICK SUMMARY OF THE
ISSUE (AND RELEVANT REFERENCE NUMBERS).  

SEE MY WEB PAGE  [6]FOR INFORMATION ON LOCAL AND NATIONAL SERVICES.

 

It’s more apparent every day that Liz Truss’s Government is in chaos.
She is clearly politically to the right of her predecessors, who at least
paid lip service to issues such as inequality, our natural world and the
climate crisis (they just did too little about them). The new team care not
a jot for these issues. Parliamentary bills and key Government
consultations that are already in progress may be ditched. We already know
this Government will downgrade work on issues such net zero, and on the
obesity strategy. What we can be pretty sure of is that funding on our
already decimated public services will be cut yet further to fill the gap
made by Kwarteng’s tax cuts and the growing rise in borrowing costs.

Meanwhile the cost-of-living crisis is hitting more and more people in this
country, not only those on low and fixed incomes, but most people with
mortgages too. The only people protected are those with significant incomes
and owning their home outright – coincidentally a group making up a large
proportion of the membership of the Conservative Party, who voted for Liz
Truss.

What will be interesting to see will be the challenges from the
“rebels” – the two thirds of Tory MPs who voted against Truss even in
the final round of voting before she and Sunak went to the members. There
will be some interesting votes in the Commons this Autumn!

Meanwhile it truly was a pleasure to be at LABOUR PARTY CONFERENCE this
year. Not only did the chaos of the Tories bring a spring to our step, but
Keir Starmer and our Shadow Cabinet really have grown in confidence and
reputation. They delivered a raft of ambitious yet realistic and
deliverable policies all along the theme of a Fairer, Greener Future that
this Country deserves; Keir announced Great British Energy – creating
jobs, growth, energy security all leading to net zero in carbon emissions.
Other commitments were; breakfast clubs in every primary school, NHS
Workforce expansion, Green exports hubs, cleaning up the water industry,
investing in tech jobs and businesses, and in neighbourhood policing –
and much more.

Obviously the death of Queen Elizabeth has been a sad event. Most of us
have known no other monarch. I was glad to be at local events to mark her
passing; the proclamation of the accession of King Charles in Hounslow High
Street, and commemoration events at church, mosque and Gurdwara. So many of
us living in the borough were able to see her coffin on its final journey
along the A4 to Windsor.

In my tributes I remembered her Christmas Message in 2004 which showed
clips of her visit to a mosque in east London, and to the Gurdwara in
Hounslow which formed part of her focus on the need to tackle division and
discrimination. The Queen then went on to to tell a story she’d heard,
about an overseas visitor to the UK who arrived at Heathrow and travelled
into London on the Piccadilly line at the end of the school day. He told of
his joy at seeing children, who would have been children from our borough
at local schools, getting on and off the tube. They were of all faiths, all
ethnicities, and all religions - playing together, talking and being
completely at ease with one another - something not possible in his own
country

Over 70 years she built bridges and tore down divides- that is why we have
seen such an emotional, such a far reaching and such a universal response
to her passing.

She epitomised the very ideal of service - and as a woman in the public
eye, she was a perfect example of grace and dignity, often in the face of
adversity.

 

MY PARLIAMENTARY ACTIVITY IN SEPTEMBER

Because of the Queen’s passing, we were only in Parliament for 5 days,
before rising for the annual conference break.

As a member of LABOUR’S INTERNATIONAL TRADE TEAM, I grilled the
Government on their SI (Statutory Instrument, or regulation) on rolling
over the EU ban on the import of dog and cat fur post-Brexit. Whilst I said
that Labour supported the Government on the SI, it was an opportunity to
challenge the Government on the delay on the enforcement of the ban, and on
the delay to the promised ban on the import of foie gras and all fur. And
now we hear that the Truss Government would roll-back large swathes of
animal welfare protection; one of many issues we will be tackling them on
in the months to come.

I spoke in a debate on the SEVEN PRINCIPLES OF PUBLIC LIFE that all public
servants have to sign up to; not only MPs and Councillors, but senior civil
servants and officers too. (For reference the 7 Principles are;
selflessness, integrity, objectivity, accountability, openness, honesty and
leadership.) I shared the horror of so many of the behaviour of Boris
Johnson and his Government, and supported the proposals made by Standards
Committee Chair, Chris Bryant, in the debate; that there be a fully
independent adviser on the ministerial code who cannot be sacked or ignored
by said PM; that Ministerial interests be declared promptly as MPs’ are
required to be; and that the Standards Committee recommendations on revised
rules of conduct for the Commons be adopted.

At Rees-Mogg’s shocking statement reversing the ban on FRACKING, I asked
him whether the threshold for community support for fracking would be as
tough as that for onshore wind development, where one objector can stop it.
He persisted in opposing on-shore wind – but the next day Kwasi Kwarteng
removed that block. Buried deep in the Chancellor’s Plan for Growth was
the commitment to bring the consultation process for on-shore wind
developments into line with other infrastructure projects; Cadbury 1 –
Rees-Mogg 0 !!! It remains to be seen whether back-bench Tories will allow
the Government to pursue fracking, Jacob Rees-Mogg had many hostile
questions from them too.

The next day at the KWARTENG’S “GROWTH” STATEMENT (the one that sent
the markets tumbling) I commented on the Government’s one-day flip-flop
on on-shore wind, and then pressed him on his apparent desire to further
undermine the planning process in the investment zones, accusing him of
launching another “Dodgy Developer’s Charter”.

The AUSTRALIA TRADE DEAL signed by the Government poses serious risks to
Britain’s hill farmers, particularly in Wales where beef and lamb
production is the main source of revenue. As a member of Labour’s
International Trade team, I took the opportunity to meet the President and
Vice-President of NFU Wales when I was there in August and heard in detail
how they fear the UK being flooded with poor quality, cheap beef and lamb
as a result of the poor deal the UK has negotiated.

 

COMMUNITY UPDATE

Yet another “BLOCK OF FLATS” SAGA came in from constituents in
September. This time from APT Parkview, the office-to-flats block on the
Great West Road in Brentford. With two weeks notice both tenants and
leaseholders were sent a retrospective bill for energy costs of
air-conditioning, charges for which they had had no warning. There are also
serious concerns about the safety of the car park in the block. I am
working with Councillor Marina Sharma, Leasehold Knowledge Partnership and
the residents to force the building owners to make amends.

I was pleased that HOUNSLOW’S PLANNING COMMITTEE refused an application
for an excessive amount of housing (along with a much-needed special
school) on Hanworth Road, Hounslow. The importance of this decision is that
Councillors recognised that the future residents of the flats could prevent
existing activites taking place on the Gurdwara (Sikh temple)’s
ceremonial space. By using environmental legislation they could take the
Gurdwara to court if they object to the noise and activities that usually
go along with religious events and wedding celebrations that frequently
occur there. I also raised serious concerns about the loss of light and
level of overlooking for residents in flats that back onto the site.

Rosi Prescott is the recently appointed Deputy Lieutenant of Hounslow, the
Monarch’s representative here. I spent a day taking her to meet a range
of community organisations including the Foodbox, South Street Café,
Hounslow Mosque, Hogarth Youth & Community Centre, and the Star Centre in
Hounslow

At the annual Tidefest on the banks of the Thames in Chiswick I met
volunteers who staff the Chiswick RNLI Lifeboat station, and also provide
water safety messages in schools and community events

Dominic Conlin is the Director of West Middlesex hospital. When we met I
had a chance to ask about the main pressures on the hospital. The shortage
of nursing care beds in the community is the biggest challenge, as there
are about 40 Hounslow residents at West Mid who no longer need to be there
but finding a nursing home or residential care support is difficult, as
there are not enough care staff to support the less frail at home or in
residential or nursing car homes.

The local Alzheimer’s Society held a coffee morning at Brentford Free
Church and raised over £500, mainly through a “silent auction” to
which I brought along a bottle of House of Commons Whiskey.

With the Cost of Living Crisis biting, I was pleased that Hounslow Council
organised a “Cost of Living Marketplace” where a host of organisations
who provide help and support to people experiencing money, health and other
challenges came together for a morning. I met up with Liz Gers of Community
Solutions to discuss the concerning shortage of adequate advice and support
on benefit advice and debt support in the borough.

Let me leave you with an important economic principle - best shown visually


With best wishes,

CONTACT  ME

If you need my support or help please email me: [email protected], or
phone: 020 8581 3646 or Write: Ruth Cadbury MP House of Commons, London
SW1A 0AA. Let us have a quick summary of the issue, and include your
address as I am only able to directly assist my constituents. Please also
include relevant reference numbers.

I hold regular surgeries, usually on Fridays, which can be in person,
on-line or by phone; please contact my office to make an appointment.
However many issues can be dealt with more quickly by email or a phone call
which saves waiting for the next available surgery.

For my Diary and Parliamentary Office email [email protected] 020
219 8590

UNSUBSCRIBE [7]

Printed from an email sent by Ruth Cadbury MP 367 Chiswick High Road
London, LON W4 4AG
United Kingdom




Links:
------
[1] [link removed]
[2] [link removed]
[3] [link removed]
[4] [link removed]
[5] [link removed]
[6] [link removed]
[7] [link removed]