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Newsletter Christmas 2010

Posted by Margot James, MP for Stourbridge, at 15:32, Thu 23 December 2010:

Dear Supporter As Christmas and another new year approaches I am pleased to be in touch one last time this year. Although December is a short month there is still plenty to let you know about. At the risk of ending the year on a controversial note I wanted to say something about the banking and financial services industry. We are about to have the European directive controlling pay and bonusses thrust upon us in the new year. Understandably, given the cost of irresponsible banking to the taxpayer, this is something that many people will welcome. However I think we should remind ourselves that financial services is a very important part of our economy. Yes, we should be re-balancing the economy so it is less dependent on financial services; but we don't want to jeopardise the banking sector in the process. I think George Osborne has been quite right to resist the pressure of people within Government and without to take unilateral action against the banks. Banks are global businesses and it is with comparative ease that they can relocate their staff abroad. Tax collection agencies in Switzerland, New York and Hong Kong would welcome them with open arms. And lower taxes.

- Activity in Parliament

This month I have continued my focus on business and employment matters. In addition I have been active in the student finance debates and represented issues raised by individual constituents in Parliament. The Business Innovation & Skills (BIS) committee visited Birmingham and it was great to meet representatives of some 30 companies in one day. We also visited Delcam, a software engineering company, for a more in depth meeting. In addition on the BIS front:

• We published the results of our enquiry in to the ending of Regional Development Agencies and the formation of Local Enterprise Partnerships (LEPs). I was also delighted that the Black Country LEP was approved by government in the second wave of LEP approvals, having lobbied for this outcome.

• I attended the committee on Arms Export Control. This committee has representation from the select committees on Foreign Affairs, BIS, Defence and International Development. I was concerned to hear about the system for granting export licenses not working, the delays are endless. We heard the same from Delcam in Birmingham and I have recommended to our chairman that we include the defence industry in our enquiry in to trade and exports which we start next month.

• I met with the CEO of the London Stock Exchange, Xavier Rolet, and we discussed capitalising small and medium sized businesses.

On student finance I intervened in the debate on tuition fees and I met a delegation from Dudley College who took part, legitimately I should add, in the protest on the day of the debate. I also spoke in a Westminster Hall debate on the Education Maintenance Allowance (EMA) and during Education questions this week I asked the minister whether he would allow students to claim for travel from the successor fund to the EMA which will allow financial support to be targeted at the students who really need it.

Sometimes we are instructed by our whips to sit on a committee that considers legislation in detail at short notice. This can of course be infuriating if you have another commitment that you want to honour. I was delegated to such a committee on Monday of this week to consider the housing benefit legislation that caps the amount paid in housing benefit; and links the average rent that the government will subsidise to the lowest 30% of average private sector rents for an area. This issue shines a light on the whole debate over deficit reduction, here are the facts:

Spending on housing benefit has grown from £14 billion in 2001 to £21billion today. This amount is projected to rise to £25 billion by 2014. Even the Labour manifesto included a commitment to reducing this bill. It is clearly growing out of control. All our budget reductions are doing is clawing back some of the projected increase over the next three years so that spending on housing benefit will be held to £23 billion by 2014.

I represented issues raised by individual constituents, I attended the debate on the demise of the Crown Currency Exchange, I intervened in a debate over the fleecing of people who own mobile homes by some Park Home operators and I questioned the Secretary of State for Education as to whether he would review the way that legislation limiting the class size of the first two years of Primary School to 30 pupils was impacting on families who want their children to attend the same school, I was very pleased that he said that he would; you don’t often get a quick win like that I can tell you.

I attended briefings organised by external organisations and ministers on the following issues:

• The NHS White Paper with the King’s Fund and separately with Andrew Lansley.

• Trade and exports with Lord Brittan, appointed a trade advisor to the Prime Minister.

• The local government financial settlement with Eric Pickles

I spoke to a meeting of the ‘Operation Golf’ team of police officers investigating child trafficking at New Scotland Yard

And I had a one to one briefing from the Home Secretary on her visit to Pakistan, the future of the ‘Prevent’ strategy and community relations. I have a great regard for the Home Secretary, it is a very difficult job and I have confidence in her judgement. It strikes me that she has the right temperament for the job. You certainly cannot imagine her chatting indiscreetly to some undercover reporter about what she may or may not think of her ministerial colleagues and their policies!

- Activity in Stourbridge

• I visited some excellent local firms this month, Polymac in Lye and Overton’s Recycling in Lye, where I presented Health & Safety awards to staff who had completed training and received important qualifications.

• I spoke at the launch of a report on capital for small businesses published by the Black Country Reinvestment Society at the Stourbridge College Advanced Technology Centre in Brierley Hill. http://www.margotjames.com/15122010_margot_launches_business_report

It is a very enjoyable time to be around the constituency with people in a festive mood, so I was pleased to drop in on one of the Age Concern Christmas lunches at the Elton Centre, the Barnardos Charity shop and the BLISS charity Christmas Fair at the Stourbridge Children and Family Centre, BLISS is a wonderful charity that supports families who have premature babies and lobbies on behalf of premature and sick babies.

In addition I:

• Met with the Asian Women behind the Humaara organisation. http://www.margotjames.com/17112010_humaara_project_visit

• Launched the ‘Roshni Project’ an excellent inter faith women’s group organised by Apni Zaroorat. http://www.margotjames.com/21122010_roshni_project

• Visited a constituent with EON energy who had benefited from their Warm Homes scheme, a critical issue at the moment of course.

• Spent an enjoyable hour being interviewed by Phil Tonks for ‘Bridge’ radio.

• Met with the principal of Stourbridge College, Lynette Cutting.

- And it wasn’t all work...

• Certainly not this month – although my journey from Stourbridge to London did take 12 hours last weekend! Jack knifed Lorries and broken down cars totally jammed the M40 and hundreds of us were stuck between junctions 8 and 9 for a good 8 hours. Thank goodness I took Jay’s advice and stopped at a service station just outside Birmingham to stock up on essentials. I finally got back at 2.00am having missed ‘Oliver’.

• Never mind, at least my younger nephew Richard and his family made it up from Cornwall and saw the show and then I did a Christmas lunch for them all the next day and took them to Winter Wonderland in the afternoon.

• It was a pleasure to host Cllr David Caunt MBE and his family for tea in the House of Commons on the day he went to the Palace to collect his very well deserved award for services to local government.

• I was invited to a very jolly dinner party for eight of us new women MPs given by my friend Andrea Leadsom, MP for Northamptonshire South. In turn Jay and I had a lovely Christmas party at our home in London and my friends from business days, Jenny McGregor and Peter Field cooked fabulous meals for us at a pre–Christmas weekend party for friends I used to work with before I was elected.

• The Speaker hosted a very enjoyable launch event for ‘Parli-out’ , a network for gay people working in Parliament of which I am a patron. I was delighted to meet Lord Smith there, formerly Chris Smith, Labour MP for Islington, whose personal courage in coming out in 1983 led the way for the equal rights we all enjoy today. Finally, I am very sorry to end on a sad note; some of you have met Lotus, my black Labrador from whom I used rarely to be parted. Lotus finally succumbed to old age last week. We had to put her sleep as she went downhill very suddenly. The vet thought that she had a stroke. Although she was otherwise normal she just couldn’t stand up. It really was quite heartrending, although I must say that right up until the end she lost none of her enthusiasm for food, so treats and meals remained a solace. Pet owners will know how it feels to lose your best friend – but I must say I am very grateful to have had her for so long. The life expectancy for a Labrador is 12 to 13 years and Lotus would have been 16 next May and she had a healthy and happy life. To me, she was quite simply the best dog in the world.

I would like to wish you all a very Happy Christmas and a peaceful and prosperous new year. I am really looking forward to our Christmas and getting started on all the last minute cooking and present wrapping. We start tomorrow, weather permitting, going to see Rupert and his family in Buckinghamshire and then we will go to Midnight Mass and spend Christmas day with friends. Whatever you are doing I hope that Christmas will bring you together with family and friends and allow some time well away from the pressures of work and life in general.

I’ll be back in touch next year.

Best wishes

Margot

http://www.margotjames.com