E-mail from David Lidington
Posted by David Lidington, MP for Aylesbury, at 17:47, Tue 10 October 2006:
Welcome to my update on my work as an MP. I hope you find it interesting but please do not hesitate to contact me if you think I should use this forum in a different way.
Parliament’s summer recess ended on Monday (9 October) and so I am back to sharing my time between Westminster and the constituency.
However, the Summer hasn’t been quiet in Bucks. The most pressing issue has of course been the consultation on cutting jobs and services in the local NHS. I have summarised my concerns in a letter to Patricia Hewitt, Secretary of State for Health, and had meetings with NHS chiefs and staff organisations, and have several more meetings on the subject this week.
I am very worried that measures such as reducing beds in community hospitals, closing the night nursing service and cutting services for children will have a terrible effect on the young, elderly and dependent in our community.
I am also concerned that cutting back on community care endangers the sustainability of the Government’s house-building programme for Bucks. A report last year explained that it would be necessary for more, not less, investment in community care to deal with the increased population that the Government’s policy will create without placing an unbearable stress on hospitals.
Tomorrow, Conservatives are using one of their few opportunities to decide the Parliamentary agenda to debate health.
I was invited to see the state of Aylesbury’s Crown Court in September. I have to say that I was appalled by the conditions there. Finding a new Crown Court building is a matter of utmost urgency if Aylesbury is to become more than a judicial slum. At the moment there are issues of security, sensitivity and access which must be addressed as a priority. For example, I was astounded that victims, jurors, defendants and their families all have to use the same staircases and that poor security has led to several defendants attempting to escape from the dock. It came as no surprise to me to learn that current staff come at the top of national league tables for hours worked but at the bottom for cases cleared. The current infrastructure is utterly inefficient and unsuitable.
I have received a number of letters about noise from the M40 in Stokenchurch and will continue to support Dr Ken Edwards’ campaign for better noise reduction measures.
The main focus in Northern Ireland is making progress on the restoration of the Northern Ireland Assembly before the Government’s 24 November deadline. I hope that progress will be made.
Please do use the HearFromYourMP website to post your comments on my work or thoughts, as I am always grateful for feedback from local residents.
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