The View from Westminster

Pic Credit: House of Commons

View from Westminster

After the Makerfield by-election, we will have the seventh prime minister in 10 years. The government must now focus on tackling the cost-of-living emergency, and on growing our economy in a way that everyone benefits.  Another by-election is also coming, triggered by  Mr Farage, MP for Clacton, wanting to become, wait… the MP for Clacton). I thought “leave means leave!” Currently Mr Farage is the subject of a parliamentary standards investigation into his undeclared 5 million pounds gift  (if he is re-elected, the investigation will resume). At time of writing his only opponent is Count Binface.

Following several fatalities and injuries on our roads, I secured a debate in Parliament on Road Safety, to call for urgent Government action. The Government’s new road safety strategy is ambitious in its aim to cut the number of people killed or seriously injured on Britain’s roads by 65% by 2035 and by 70% for children under sixteen. Yet a strategy without teeth is not a strategy at all. My debate therefore called on the Government to commit to radical solutions. Currently, it is incredibly difficult to implement any type of traffic calming measures or speed reduction orders. Often, even if measured are agreed, the cost of the proposals falls on parish councils and take many months to complete. Locally, I have been working with National Highways and local parish councils to improve  the deadly Billesley junction on the A46.  Where the A422 Banbury Road meets the B4455 Fosse Way, just east of the village of Ettington, drivers, cyclists, and bikers navigate a junction that should never have been designed the way it was. There are many other dangerous junctions. I also asked Warwickshire County Council for a safety review of the Binton Bridge current give way system as many of you have contacted me about this.

Many of you have told me about how you cherish our rivers and brooks, and how deeply upset you are about the way these have been polluted. I am campaigning hard, together with MPs from across the House, to see a change. Legislation brought forward last year should start to be implemented and we should see an improvement in water quality. I am however still calling for the volume of sewage spills to be monitored, and for much stronger penalties, including prison sentences. I was honoured to join nature rights campaigners, as well as Stratford Climate Action and River Hope, for events of the Great Big Green Week, including a panel on resilience on food, energy, and jobs in light of the climate emergency and extreme weather patterns, and the launch of Ondine’s Odyssey, the spirit of the river, accompanied by beautiful performances by the Stour Singers. At the launch I was presented by Moving Souls Dance with a wall hanging depicting the current state of the River Avon. This will be exhibited in my constituency office in Rother Street.   I also joined Stratford on Avon Kayaks, Rubbish Friends, Paddle UK and residents and local organisations for the Big Paddle Clean Up, where we took to the river on kayaks and canoes, looking for and collecting litter from the riverbanks and riverbed. 

Another debate I took part in was about air pollution, a silent killer, especially during heatwaves. As a member of the Environmental Audit Committee, I visited communities to understand the physical and mental health impacts of air pollution. During this visit I met Rosamund Adoo-Kissi-Debrah, mum to Ella Roberta. For over a decade, Rosamund has campaigned tirelessly for cleaner air through Ella’s law. A landmark inquest in 2020 ruled that toxic air from traffic emissions contributed to Ella’s death, marking the first time that air pollution was officially recognised as a cause of death in the UK. Among other measures, Ella’s law would enshrine a legal right to breathe clean air, requiring the Government to meet stricter air quality standards based on the World Health Organisation guidelines. We must not let children like Ella and their families down when turning our attention to this urgent problem, yet in the UK, an estimated 500 people die of disease related to air pollution each week. Long-term exposure to emissions can cause heart and lung problem and increase the risk of a person developing cancers. Fine particulate matter from polluted air penetrates deep into the body, settling in our lungs. Recent research has also pointed to an increased risk of cognitive decline, Alzheimer’s disease and dementia from long-term exposure to fine particulate air pollution, which can affect the heart and blood vessels. The Liberal Democrats have called for the introduction of a new clean air Act, based on World Health Organisation guidelines and enforced by a dedicated air quality agency. Children in the UK today have some of the worst asthma outcomes in the developed world. It is not right that so many lives are shortened by diseases that we can work together to prevent. 

I have also started my Summer Tour, during which I visit businesses, charities, community groups and have surgeries around the constituency. I was delighted as part of my tour  to visit Welford’s Avon Cat Rescue, and see the work that volunteers are doing for over 90 cats, making sure these lovely cats are looked after and find their forever home. Thank you to all residents who support this brilliant charity!