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Newsletter December 2010

Posted by Margot James, MP for Stourbridge, at 11:38, Thu 2 December 2010:

Dear Subscriber,

As a member of the Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) select committee I have paid close attention to the debate over tuition fees.

The previous government had earmarked the BIS department for cuts in spending of 20%. Universities represent 70% of the department's spending. Do the maths as they say.

Our Government has ringfenced the health budget, virtually ringfenced schools and allowed defence a well below average reduction of some 8%. The other departments have had to share the pain and Higher Education cannott be exempt from this decision.

You would never know from some of the publicity that students will be faced with no upfront fees, 25% of students will actually be better off than they are under the current system, part time students will be exempt from all upfront charges for the first time and measures have been put in place to help students from poorer backgrounds: an increase in the maintenance grant and a Scholarship Fund of £150m. No graduate will have to pay any interest on their debt until they earn £21,000 pa and the top earning graduates will repay twice as much as the bottom earning graduates.

Higher Education is a public good and should receive support from the state.

Our Government is continuing that support. Whereas before universities were funded 60% by the state and 40% privately, mostly via income from student loans, we are reversing the ratio so they will in future be funded 40% from the public purse and 60% privately.

Considering the average degree confers additional salary prospects on the graduate in excess of £100,000 I think that is fair enough, given the dire financial straits bequeathed to us by the last Government and the banking crisis.

-Activity in Parliament-

This month I have focussed on business, trade and employment issues. My Business Innovations & Skills select committee meets every Tuesday morning and we have had some interesting sessions with the Banking industry, representatives of the CBI, the Federation of Small Business, and the TUC. We are about to publish the results of our investigation in to the replacement of Regional Development Agencies by Local Enterprise Partnerships. As well as my select committee work I:

• Spoke in a debate in Parliament on private sector growth. http://www.margotjames.com/11112010_policy_for_growth

• Attended the AGM of the All Party Group on small business of which I am an officer.

• Attended a lunch with Toyota on the challenges facing the car industry.

• Met with directors of Royal Bank of Scotland to hear their side of the ‘Banks aren’t lending to small businesses’ issue.

• Met the Singaporean High Commissioner and learned about their approach to supporting business growth. Their GDP is growing at an amazing 13-15% p.a.

• Attended a briefing from Lord Browne on university tuition fees, from Grant Shapps. on housing benefit, from John Hayes on skills and vocational training policy, from Chris Grayling on how we are incorporating mental health checks in to the work capability assessments for people on disability benefits.

I spend approximately a quarter of my time on business and employment matters but that still leaves plenty of time for my other interests and this month I focussed on:

• Leading my first debate in Westminster Hall, I selected sheltered housing as the issue as I have been campaigning on this for some time now, to get greater respect for tenants and residents and their contracts embedded in the system. http://www.margotjames.com/17112010_sheltered_housing_debate

• Speaking at the Women 2 Win’s inaugural meeting of its business group. W2W is an excellent lobby organisation responsible for getting many more Conservative women in to Parliament, I was delighted to see its co-founder Anne Jenkin made a life peer in the recent list of honours.

• Questioning the following ministers in Parliament: George Osborne on government support for exports, Eric Pickles on why more councils aren’t taking the approach of the Black Country councils looking to rationalise back office functions by combining functions across four boroughs, Andrew Lansley twice: on improving cancer outcomes, and on alcohol-related admissions to hospital, Vince Cable on employment law and whether we can get a less regulated environment for small businesses and Jim Paice, the farming minister, on the animal welfare implications of intensive dairy farming.

• Speaking at the African Foundation for Development during Global Enterprise Week.

• Speaking at the launch of GFest, an annual Gay film and arts festival in London, calling on the organisers to come to the regions next year.

• Attending briefings by the Care Quality Commission, the Rehabilitation of Addicted Prisoners Trust and the Three Faiths Forum for whom I have agreed to mentor some students next year.

• Attending the tri-annual meeting of the All Party Group on Hospices and Palliative Care and heard an excellent presentation by Tom Hughes-Hallet on the independent review of palliative care for children and adults he is chairing.

• Attending a lunch with Sir Jeremy Greenstock on the Middle East, he put the argument for including Hamas in the negotiations, an argument with which I had previously had little sympathy, very persuasively.

• Organising a drop in ‘surgery’ for West Midlands MPs with Centro, the Integrated Transport Authority for our region followed by a dinner afterwards with Chairman Cllr. Angus Adams, and the Centro senior team. Things are looking up for public transport under the new Government with Philip Hammond proving an excellent Secretary of State. http://www.margotjames.com/30112010_transport_infrastructure

• Doing quite a few interviews: I was on the Radio 4 Any Questions panel, also on Radio 4 I was interviewed for the Week in Westminster on tuition fees, The Bridge Radio Saturday Brunch show and I also did some interviews for charity broadcasters: Stonewall who were making a film for young gay people on how things are getting better and a fantastic group called Mama Youth who interviewed me about the Big Society for Sky 3.

BBC Radio 4 Any Questions: http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/console/b00vrytz/Any_Questions_12_11_2010

-Activity in Stourbridge-

• The highlight of the month was of course Remembrance Sunday. I attended services and parades in Lye, Cradley and our main one in Mary Stevens Park as well as joining ex service men and women for a drink at the British Legion.

• I supported the Race Night at Stourbridge Rugby Club to raise money for Mary Stevens Hospice and met the first team and coach, who are all doing really well this season.

• I held Q&As at the House of Commons for Redhill School and King Edward’s College.

• I launched the Home Hub handyman service for older people from the Black Country Housing Group.

• Dudley Council for Voluntary Services came to see me with Cllr. Liz Walker and we discussed the Big Society and policy towards the voluntary sector.

• Richard Carter, acting head of Adult and Social Care at Dudley Council and I met to discuss the impact locally of the changes to disability benefits.

• N Power took me to see a resident whose home had central heating for the first time this year thanks to N Power’s ‘Health through Warmth’ scheme.

• I judged my Christmas Card Competition kindly organised for the fourth time by Barbara Glover who runs the Age Concern art class.

• I visited Bird Stevens, a classic old Black Country metal bashing company in Quarry Bank, and heard with great interest how they had diversified, built exports and were now taking on apprenticeships.

• Also in Quarry Bank, one of my favourite parts of the constituency, I was honoured to be invited to turn on the Christmas Lights, Quarry Bank has a very active Friends of local amenities group who have secured these festive lights for the first time.

As usual it wasn’t all work...

• I managed to get ahead with my Christmas cooking, the Christmas cakes and puddings are done, and some of Delia’s spiced apricot chutney. I have abandoned the mince pies this year and will no doubt have to face some complaints about that as we search out the best bought ones available.

• I tutored a charity wine tasting for the Stourbridge Rotary Club, I like to keep my hand in on wine tastings so I really enjoyed it and the 40 odd Rotary members present seemed very enthusiastic too.

• I assembled my advent calendar box for great niece Poppy who is nearly three and understands Christmas this year, finding 24 tiny things to go in each drawer is a fun part of my Christmas shopping, in which I am otherwise hopelessly behind.

• It was nice to have drinks with members and supporters at the Crabmill during National Pub week and also I enjoyed very much a couple of meals with ex Chairman Ted Baker and Jo Baker at their home and then at the House of Commons preceeded by Prime Minister’s Questions.

Best wishes

Margot

www.margotjames.com