Newsletter July 2011
Posted by Margot James, MP for Stourbridge, at 15:39, Fri 1 July 2011:
Dear Subscriber,
There is no doubt about the strength of feeling that exists about the Government’s plans to make public sector pensions more affordable. But most people I have spoken to don’t believe the strikes were justified none the less. A lot of people who work in the private sector certainly don’t. Gordon Brown’s raid on private pensions in the late nineties stripped £8 billion out of private pension provision. Plans where you retire on a pension equivalent to your final salary are a thing of the past in the private sector; and just 35% of workers are covered by any scheme at all to which employers contribute. By comparison 85% of public sector employees are in a contributory scheme.
The levels of taxpayer contribution to some of these schemes is now under the spotlight. Civil Service pensions are based on member contributions of up to 3.5% of salary topped up by 19% of salary paid for by the taxpayer. There was a time when these pensions were justified by bigger salaries in the private sector but that time is long gone and average earnings in the public sector now exceed the private sector. The other factor of course is the fact that we are all living longer. If you retired in 1970 you could expect on average to live another 18 years; by 2010 this figure had increased to 28 years.
These are the reasons I support the government’s plan to ask public sector workers to contribute more personally to their pensions and work longer before they receive them. The plans exempt those on low pay from the increased contributions and the final payments will be based on a career average of earnings rather than your final salary. This is still so much better than those pensions that still exist in the private sector and of course all rights and benefits accrued so far will be respected.
- Representing Stourbridge in Parliament -
---Questions, Debates and Letters to Ministers---
• Health: I asked the Minister for Care Services about the ongoing problems facing Southern Cross care homes. http://margotjames.com/07062011_southern_cross
• Justice: I questioned the Minister for Policing about reports that police officers cannot act when they are abused by members of the public. http://margotjames.com/28062011_police
• International Development: I urged ministers to make sure that women are included in their development programmes in the Middle East and North Africa. http://margotjames.com/08062011_women_in_egypt
• I asked the Prime Minister about our policy for a benefits cap. http://margotjames.com/15062011_pmqs
• I took part in the following debates;
- A debate on the Winterbourne View care home which was featured in a recent Panorama episode. http://www.margotjames.com/07062011_winterbourne_view
- A debate on the economy where I discussed some signs of an economic recovery. http://margotjames.com/22062011_economy
• I wrote to the following ministers;
- Justine Greening, a Treasury minister, about VAT relief for charities.
- Environment minister Richard Benyon to pass on Stourbridge residents’ comments about reform of the canals.
- Minister for Prisons, Crispin Blunt, and Minister for Further Education, John Hayes, about rehabilitation of ex-offenders.
- Steve Webb, Minister for Pensions, to raise the concerns constituents regarding reforms of the State Pension.
- The minister responsible for Africa at the Foreign Office, Henry Bellingham, on behalf of a constituent concerned about the humanitarian situation in South Sudan.
- Health minister Anne Milton about training of nurses.
- Nick Hurd, Minister for Charities, to set up a meeting for local businesses.
- Treasury minister David Gauke regarding VAT payments for small businesses. ---Meetings and Briefings--- • I attended a briefing by serving officers and defence ministers on Libya.
• I attended a briefing by Foreign Office minister, Jeremy Browne on trade opportunities in Latin America.
• The TUC invited me to a dinner with Brendan Barber to discuss public sector pensions.
• A drop in session for National Carer’s Week gave me an opportunity to meet representatives of Carer’s UK and Macmillan Cancer Support. http://margotjames.com/23062011_carers_week
• I took part in led a discussion about the Higher Education White Paper led by minister, David Willetts.
• The lead official at the Dept of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs briefed me on the revised guidelines for the Chemicals Industry over which the UK is battling with the EU.
• It was a very busy month for my committee work: - The Energy Bill committee sat for five days http://margotjames.com/27062011_energy_bill
- I attended two sessions of my Business, Innovation & Skills committee where we were scrutinising the new bill that seeks to strengthen the position of suppliers in relation to Supermarkets
- The Health and Social Care Bill committee has been re-formed to scrutinise the amended clauses following the Government’s ‘listening exercise’ ---Media---
• I gave interviews to Radio WM on residential care and Southern Cross; and again on the strikes in the public sector.
• Al Jackson talked to me about a range of issues for an hour on ‘The Bridge’ radio
• I wrote a piece for the House Magazine on Business and Government working together http://www.margotjames.com/28062011_house_magazine
- Out and About in Stourbridge -
• It was very good to get to the monthly meeting of the Stourbridge Township Council
• I was given a tour of Oldswinford Primary School now accorded ‘outstanding’ status by Ofsted, and for good reason. http://www.margotjames.com/14062011_oldswinford_primary
• I welcomed the Community Association of Quarry Bank on their visit to Parliament.
• Together with fellow Dudley MPs James Morris and Ian Austin I joined a panel for a question and answer session with the Dudley Carer’s Forum. http://www.margotjames.com/22062011_carers_week
• Base Studios invited me for a tour of their facilities and a discussion about their idea to form a Social Enterprise to train young people who have missed out on school. http://www.margotjames.com/30062011_base_studios
• ‘Stourbug’ (Stourbridge Biker’s User Group) took off on a sixty mile ride from Mary Stevens Park and I started the sixty cyclists off on their day. http://www.margotjames.com/21062011_bike_week
• I went to the Coach House centre for young adults with learning disabilities for their quarterly coffee morning and fundraiser.
• I was pleased to open the annual Summer Gala for Age Concern Stourbridge and Halesowen in the gardens of Mary Stevens Hospice.
• I presented the annual Stourbridge College student awards at the Copthorne Hotel
• I spoke to the new Stourbridge Conservative lunch club at the Edwardian Club and it was a real pleasure to present Margaret Fraser with a long service award given by the Conservative Party and signed by the Prime Minister. - It wasn't all work -
Jay and I were thrilled to be invited to Wimbledon and we had a wonderful day watching Andy Murray and Nadal in the men’s last sixteen. We also got the opportunity to go to the Trooping of the Colour and see British pageantry at it’s best. I enjoyed an early morning viewing of the Summer Exhibition at the Royal Academy and it was lovely to be able to wander round in a small group.
David Cameron gave a party at Number Ten for Gay Pride which had an interesting set of guests including Billie-Jean King.
I was pleased to be able to go to a lovely party given at the home of newly elected councillor Glenis Simms and her husband David in Sedgley to mark former councillor Anne Millward’s leadership of Dudley Council.
My cousin Felix Nobes in his GCSE course at a school in Warwick has just finished a two week work experience and it has been lovely to spend some time with him, thanks to Kate, Gary and Karen for making his time with us so useful and to Cllr Les Jones for arranging him to spend a day at Dudley Council.
Whilst on the subject of young people I am really delighted to let everyone who knows Tom Reynolds know that Tom got a 2:1 in his second year exams at Exeter University; congratulations Tom.
Best wishes
Margot
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Posted by Martin Langston, 22:40, Fri 1 July 2011: (Is this post abusive?) #
The strength of feeling is to oppose the Pay more for longer and get less agenda, especially as reports have shown that civil service pensions are affordable, we must mix in different circles as most people I have spoken to approved of the action taken as the Government have refused to budge on their dogmatic attack on public servants. In my office the strike was supported by about 85% of staff. You say that the pensions are topped up by the taxpayer, Can I remind you that I also pay tax just like everyone else. Perhaps you could look a bit closer at the businesses who ship the majority of profits abroad to avoid their tax burdon? I agree that Private sector pensions have been savaged, but why would any reasonable person want to have a race to the bottom with pensions. Why not support workers rights and improve the private sector pensions so all workers can retire in dignity?
Posted by Chris Newey, 06:25, Sun 3 July 2011: (Is this post abusive?) #
How can anyone get a 2:1 in the second year of a degree course
Posted by Margot James, 08:08, Tue 12 July 2011: (Is this post abusive?) #
Dear Martin,
Thank you for your comments, and I do appreciate the concerns of public servants faced with these changes. I would just say that the Government asked Lord Hutton to look into pension arrangements at length and he has proposed a number of changes to pensions. When generous public service pensions are funded by the taxpayer through large employer contributions I do think we need to look at the sustainability of those pensions.
Of course we want to reward public servants with generous pensions but pensions need to be sustainable in order to be generous. Such pensions do not exist in the private sector simply because they are not economically viable. So there is an issue of fairness between the public and private sectors.
I agree with you that we need to be clamping down on tax evasion, and too many businesses are not paying their fair share. I think you will find that our government will do more than the last government to tackle tax evasion. Although obviously the sums involved cannot be guaranteed and would not be of an order to solve the financial difficulties that our country faces. We need to get our public spending under control to eliminate the deficit, and this does involve some difficult decisions unfortunately.
Best wishes,
Margot
Posted by Margot James, 08:09, Tue 12 July 2011: (Is this post abusive?) #
Dear Chris,
Tom's results for the second year exams were an equivalent of a 2:1, the 2nd year exams contribute to the final degree though of course he has to wait until next year to get his final results. Which may or may not be a 2:1.
Margot
Posted by Martin Langston, 20:27, Fri 15 July 2011: (Is this post abusive?) #
Margot, I appreciate your reply. But the National Audit Office in 2010 said that Civil Service pensions are sustainable due to the negotiated agreements 5 years previously. Are you saying that they were wrong in their conclusions? Generous pensions? Average Civil Service pension £6000 (just over 100 per week) and for the majority of Civil Servants on lower pay £4200 (£80 per week). Hardly generous! What the Government is trying to achieve is a race to the bottom with terms and conditions so Civil Service Departments look more attractive to Private Companies to take over for profit. Just look at the latest 'Open Public Services' White Paper, about selling off Public Services, they wouldn't want us with 'Generous' terms and conditions, would they?
This Government is going some way to tackling evasion, not as far as needed, but is changing the structure of HMRC to get more. However is not even touching the unethical avoidance which could bring in £10's of Billions that is earned in this country and then, through various techniques, syphoned to a tax haven, therefore avoiding tax that should be paid in this country, mostly done by big business. Is there any reason that there is no stratagy for dealing with this?
Martin