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Political Round-Up
Political round-up Opinions expressed do not necessarily reflect those of the publisher A special gift from MPs to Her Majesty
Congratulations on 70 glorious years to Her Majesty The Queen. What a joy it is to be able to celebrate the Platinum Jubilee. Services of thanksgiving, parades, beacons, street parties and family gatherings will ensure that this occasion of national pride is engraved on our hearts. It is most gratifying that the Jubilee coincides with the removal of all scaffolding from the Elizabeth Tower so that Big Ben can be revealed once again in all its splendour. Members of Parliament have paid for a special gift in honour of Her Majesty – a pair of ornate lamps sculpted in bronze on either side of the steps which lead from Westminster Hall with its Diamond Jubilee window to New Palace Yard where the Silver Jubilee Fountain is situated. Public visits and tours to the House of Commons are now being resumed and I encourage readers to see for themselves what has been achieved. The new Session of Parliament, which began with the Queen’s Speech on May 10, has been interrupted for the Jubilee but is about to resume in earnest. The war in Ukraine, the challenge of rising energy costs and their impact upon family budgets remain at the top of the agenda. My participation in the debate enabled me to restate the argument for lower taxes and less government. I expressed my concern that windfall taxes are both simplistic and damaging. Describing a tax as a windfall tax does not make it any less of a tax. Instead of flirting with the idea of ever-higher taxes, we need to encourage our oil and gas industry to invest, rather than disinvest in our economy. Instead of windfall taxes, the Government should be paying back to taxpayers some of the windfall receipts of tax revenue. VAT receipts are expected to be £9billion more this year than predicted. These could be used to scrap VAT and green levies on energy bills. I referred to the statement in the Queen’s Speech that ‘Government will drive economic growth to improve living standards’. The emphasis needs to be on increasing productivity and reducing the overbloated Civil Service so that we can recover from the highest levels of taxation in a generation and with inflation raging at almost 10%. As chairman of the allparty parliamentary group on park homes, I took the opportunity to remind the Government that it has not fulfilled its commitment to introduce legislation to change from RPI to CPI the measure for calculating the maximum annual increase in charges for pitch fees for park home residents. The Government also has outstanding business to deal with the issue of rogue operators and complex company structures which bedevil so much of the park homes industry.
Christchurch & East Dorset CHRIS CHOPE MP
Was lethal delay due to drunk staff at No 10?
They say imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. The government has U-turned and implemented Labour’s policy of a windfall tax (sorry, ‘energy profits levy’) on oil and gas firms to fund relief on our energy bills. And to be fair to the Tories, they have actually gone further than Labour could get away with, by borrowing to provide additional support. Listen carefully and you can hear Richard Drax spitting teeth in South Dorset. The truth is there is little to separate the parties now on macro-economic policy or tax and spend. The Tories have come round to the centre ground with higher taxation to better fund public services. This provides an opportunity to Labour. I would advocate we go into the next election promising to stay within Sunak’s tax and spend envelope, as Brown successfully did in 1997, neutralising the usual lazy attacks on our fiscal credibility. This windfall U-turn is symptomatic of a weak government that has run out of ideas, and for whom the agenda is set by a mixture of events, the opposition and a zealous commitment to culture war. Creating Daily Mailpandering dividing lines seems to be all they have left. I don’t know how our local MPs put up with it. The recent defence of parties as ‘work events’ is perverse - no one else was having work leaving dos in 2020.
Dorset Labour GREG WILLIAMS
It just proves that with this government, its one rule for them, and one rule for the rest of us. Every week in the House it’s the same old show - a fading Prime Minister reduced to rattling off his old hits like an artist with no new material. ‘Got Brexit done’ – not a track that he plays in Northern Ireland. ‘Worldbeating economic growth’ – another lie. And then that worn-out 45 ‘Fastest vaccine rollout’ with the B-side ‘179,000 Covid deaths’ that he’d rather we didn’t flip the record over to hear. The Sue Gray report – or just Sue, as Johnson referred to her in the Commons, betraying a familiarity which adds grist to the rumour mill she was leant upon by the PM in order to pull her punches – did clear one thing up. We know why the Government delayed implementing the second lockdown in October 2020, with the needless waste of thousands of extra lives. It’s because the staff at Number 10 were too drunk.
Dorset HealthCare is inviting band 5 registered nurses to a one-off online event showcasing roles available at the Trust that will develop and shape their nursing career. Taking place on Tuesday, June 7, from 5-6.30pm, the event will provide information about vacancies on offer in district nursing and community hospital teams which provide vital services for local residents. The virtual event will allow potential new recruits to meet the Trust’s key nursing leads, find out about each hospital and community team, discover how they can develop their career and ask questions – all from the comfort of their home. Anneka Moxom, inset, district nurse team lead for West Dorset, said: “The saying ‘do a job you love, and you will never have to work a day in your life’ is exactly how I feel working for Dorset HealthCare.” More information at dorsethealthcare. nhs.uk/work-for-us/band-5-nurses. Deadline to apply is Sunday, June 12.
Wimborne Minster is to hold a Saying Goodbye Service for people affected by the loss of a baby in pregnancy or early years. The services are open to people of all faiths or none, whenever they lost their baby. Friends, family and children are welcome, along with people who have lost babies through miscarriage, IVF, or even those who have never been able to have children, say organisers, the Saying Goodbye charity. A spokesman said: “Grief is sadly a lifelong journey, but how we carry that grief can truly change how we live our lives.” The service takes place on Sunday July 10 from 3.30pm-4.30pm with doors open from 45 minutes prior to the start. For more information contact saying goodbye.org/services.
New Stour & Avon, June 3, 2022 17 Citizens Advice says thanks to volunteers
Citizens Advice in East Dorset & Purbeck has seen a huge number of enquiries from people struggling to stay on top of bills. Thanks to its volunteers and staff, Citizens Advice has continued to give essential advice and crisis support. As part of Volunteers’ Week, which runs until June 7, Citizens Advice is thanking its volunteers for their exceptional contribution to the charity and local community. No less than 51 volunteers contribute 301 hours each week and in the past year have helped nearly 5,000 people with more than 16,000 problems, such as debt, housing, benefit and employment issues. Carol, volunteer adviser for more than three years, said: “Knowing you’ve helped an individual or a family to move forward with their lives is very rewarding.” Chief officer Helen Goldsack said: “We have an incredible team of volunteers who freely give their time and skills to ensure residents get support in their time of need.” To find out more about volunteering visit: edpcitizensadvice.org.uk or contact mandi. douglas@edpcitizensadvice.org.uk. Full training and support is provided. For free advice, call the Adviceline on 0800 144 8848 or visit edpcitizensadvice.org.uk.
Lottery funds return of support group
The popular family support group run by Diverse Abilities, Dorset’s disability charity, has returned thanks to funding from the National Lottery’s Reaching Communities Fund. The fortnightly sessions are a chance for parents to enjoy some refreshments and have a chat with others in similar situations to themselves. The sessions alternate between a coffee morning held at the Families Centre in West Moors and a chance to take part in an activity in the local area, such as a walk along the beach, afternoon tea or pamper sessions. There will also be parent training sessions from professionals to support parents and carers to understand their child’s additional needs. Clare Rochford, the children’s team manager, said: “We are so pleased to finally welcome back families, as well as meet new ones. “These sessions are a chance to meet other parents and carers in a safe and welcoming environment. As well as opportunities to just have a chat, there will be themed sessions to help parents with specific issues such as deputyships, will with trusts, benefit applications and more.” A parent who attended a recent session said: “It was great to meet up with other parents. I really appreciated this relaxing, different kind of day. “Enjoying a delicious cream tea, followed by a walk along the beach was the perfect combination.” The sessions are open to parents and carers of any child with a disability and have proved to be a vital service to discuss issues and build a support network. Visit diverseabilities.org.uk/ familysupport for more information about the Family Support sessions and other ways that Diverse Abilities support the whole family.
