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News from Your Local MP

Posted by Dawn Primarolo, MP for Bristol South, at 14:41, Thu 28 April 2011:

WELCOME!

Here’s the latest edition of my regular newsletter.

NHS REFORMS

I’ve received many emails in recent weeks from local residents who are very concerned about the Government’s proposals to break up and privatise the NHS. Our health service was hard-won and is highly valued by us all, and with cuts being made in virtually all areas of Government spending, it beggars belief that the Government are even contemplating these changes, which will cost billions of pounds. The Government wants an NHS which, while publicly funded, relies on private companies to provide treatment, administrative support and commissioning. This will cause unprecedented uncertainty and is understandably angering GPs who want to focus on patient care rather than endless paperwork. The Health Secretary has said he will undertake a ‘listening exercise’ to understand people’s concerns about this issue, but it’s not clear what form this will take, and I am worried that the Government are simply trying to take some of the heat out of the situation, only to try to press ahead with the proposals at a later date.

PRIMARY SCHOOL PLACES

This week, Bristol City Council announced its primary school place allocations for children who will be starting school in September. I was shocked to be contacted by a number of parents, particularly those living in the Southville & Bedminster area, who have not been offered any of their three named choices of local school, instead being offered places at schools over two miles away - a round trip of about an hour and a half walk, twice a day! This is clearly not acceptable. Most people would rightly expect their child should be able to attend the local primary school, and those parents affected have been badly let down. I have had concerns about the lack of primary school places in the BS3 area for some time and only a couple of months ago I raised this matter with the Council. I’ve written again this week to the Council on behalf of local residents, and if anyone else is concerned about the place their child has been offered, please do get in touch.

VISIT TO KELLAWAY BUILDING SUPPLIES

Last week I visited Kellaway Building Supplies in Ashton to view their premises and learn more about the supply side of the construction industry and how builders’ merchants can help households cut their carbon use. During my visit I met Branch Manager, Matt Hodge, and other Kellaway staff who told me about the company’s operations . I was very interested to hear about Kellaway’s success in the Bristol area since opening their first branch in 1982, and I was particularly impressed by their investment in staff training and development. We also discussed Kellaway’s future plans, especially how they can help make homes and buildings more energy efficient through the provision of energy saving measures such as insulation and new boilers.

MASSAGE PARLOUR ON BRITISH ROAD

Regular readers of my newsletter will know that earlier this year I opposed plans to open a massage parlour on British Road in Bedminster. I know that many local residents were extremely concerned about the proposals, especially as the site is in a residential area and not far from a primary school and children’s centre. Fortunately the planning application was turned down by the Council however the developers have now submitted a new application, so I have again written to the Council expressing my objections.

LOTTERY FUNDING

I am regularly contacted by the Big Lottery Fund asking me to make local residents and organisations aware of the various grants for which they may be eligible to apply. Since June 2004 the Big Lottery Fund has given £2,920,139 to fund a wide range of projects in Bristol South and I’m always delighted to hear about the latest awards. The Big Lottery’s focus is on communities and people most in need and they fund projects relating to health, education, environment and charitable purposes. For more information about the funding programmes available, visit the Big Lottery Fund website: http://www.biglotteryfund.org.uk/funding-uk

ANY QUESTIONS?

If you have any queries about these issues, or have a question you would like to ask about anything else, please do not hesitate to get in touch. Just email dawn.primarolo.mp@parliament.uk, phone 0117 909 0063 or write to me at PO Box 1002, Bristol, BS99 1WH.