|

    Parliamentary Report - January 2004

    Local Activity

    • Attended the funeral of PC Ian Broadhurst at Leeds Parish Church
    • Visited Ingram Road Primary School
    • Visited the Grove Centre, Little London
    • Presented cheque to winner of Regional Labour Party Raffle
    • Met committee members of the Asha Neighbourhood Centre, Beeston
    • Visited youth community activity scheme in Bradford
    • Met Cllr Mohammed Iqbal to discuss Pakistan and Kashmir
    • Met with West Yorkshire Learning and Skills Council
    • Met Tony Goodall to talk about alcohol reduction issues
    • Held briefing meeting with TIDAL (campaigning for trade justice)
    • Attended reception for Leeds College of Technology at the Civic Hall
    • Regular advice surgeries

    Local Issues

    Following a long campaign by parents, pupils, governors, staff, councillors and myself, City of Leeds High School has been saved from closure. It will now form part of a new ‘federation’ between the school and Primrose High. Provided the proposals are formally agreed by Leeds City Council and the school governors, they will operate under one head teacher and a single governing body. Between them, the two schools will have about 1,300 pupils and will share resources.

    Leeds City Council is looking to use funding from 12 existing neighbourhood warden posts to pay for up to 37 Police and Community Support Officers to deploy on the streets of the city. The cost would be split with West Yorkshire Police. PCSOs have greater powers than wardens and work more flexible hours including evenings, so the local community can now have their say as to who they would prefer patrolling their streets. As part of the plans, existing Neighbourhood Wardens can also work towards becoming PCSOs, with a net gain of up to 25 extra officers being posted on the streets and a guarantee of no redundancies among wardens.

    I have protested strongly to the Post Office about the proposed closure of six post offices in the constituency, including the 100-year old City Square Post Office. In my letter, I expressed astonishment at the extent of the plans. In parts of the inner city, for example Cottingley, there simply isn’t a readily accessible alternative. In Hunslet Carr, many elderly residents, including those living in sheltered accommodation would find the alternative difficult, and Woodhouse and Hyde Park would see two post offices close.

    Political Developments

    The week ahead will of course be dominated by the issue of student support and university funding, and the Hutton Report.

    I attended the meeting of the PLP this week which discussed the tuition fee plans and the significant changes that Charles Clarke has made in response to the points that have been put to him.

    The proposals will abolish up-front fees (ie no-one will now have to pay fees at the time they are studying); contributions will be paid back through the tax system after graduation based on what people earn rather than on what they owe; the repayment earnings threshold will rise to £15,000 pa, there will be no real rate of interest on the loans/fees and any outstanding sums will be written off after 25 years; there will be an improved £3,000 support package for poorer students; and a Parliament-protected cap on future fee increases beyond £3,000 will be legislated for. A graduate earning £20,000 pa will repay just £8.65 a week - no matter what they owe - compared with £17.31 a week under the current system.
    In effect what’s being proposed is an individualised graduate tax. The Tories’ policy, meanwhile, is in complete disarray.

    There is good news on employment, which is up by 1.7 million to a record high. The new figures show more people in work, falling unemployment and redundancies at a historically low level. The UK has the highest employment rate and lowest unemployment of the G7 group of major industrialised countries. We have not been in this position for over half a century. And the New Deal for Young People has found 1,800 jobs for young people in the constituency.

    5,873 pensioners in Leeds Central are now receiving Labour’s new Pension Credit. The average payment being made is £45.29 a week.

    The new measures contained in the Anti-Social Behaviour Act came into force this week. These include new powers to ensure: closure of crack houses; dispersal of groups causing trouble; controls on the sale of aerosol paints; a new offence of possession of an air weapon in a public place; and a ban on high-powered air weapons.

    Labour’s huge investment in the NHS is beginning to make a difference. Waiting times are reducing (the number now waiting more than 12 months is virtually nil), and the percentage of patients getting to see a GP within 48 hours is increasing,

    The new Employment Relations Bill contains important new rights for workers and trade unionists, including: implementation of the EU Directive on information and consultation; new powers for the Inland Revenue to enforce the minimum wage; and improvements to the recognition law.

    Ministerial Activity

    In December I attended the Commonwealth Heads of Government Conference in Nigeria. I then travelled on to the Democratic Republic of the Congo, where I met President Kabila, and on to the Sudan, where the peace negotiations are at a crucial stage.

    On Boxing Day a terrible earthquake in the city of Bam, in Iran, killed an estimated 30,000 people. DFID chartered a plan that same day to carry UK search and rescue teams to Bam; we also sent tents, paid for tetanus vaccines and loaned the Iranian authorities two aeroplanes to help transport the relief supplies that started flooding in.

    Last week I paid a 3-day visit to Pakistan, visiting Islamabad, Pershawar and Lahore and holding talks with President Musharraf. Pakistan is doing badly, by international comparisons, on health and education, but the recent agreement to talk to India about Kashmir is very welcome, not least by the many Kashmiris in the constituency.

    Other activities included:

    • Launching the Call for Action on HIV/AIDS on World AIDS Day
    • Responding to a Commons debate on the Congo and the Great Lakes
    • Meeting with the Iraqi Education Minister
    • Meeting with the former President of Zambia, Kenneth Kaunda

    Political Activity

    I attended the Christmas Dinner of the Sleaford Branch Labour Party as guest speaker.

    I have also hosted a Big Conversation consultation with development NGOs on international development, and will be holding one in Ethiopia, at the suggestion of Save the Children, during my forthcoming visit.

    More from Dods
    Advertise

    Spread your message to an audience that counts, with options available for our website, email bulletins and publications including The House Magazine.