Letter from Parliament

This week is a special letter from Parliament – it is my MPs Report to the Annual General Meeting of Rochdale Liberal Democrats.  As an Assistant Whip for the Liberal Democrats I was unable to attend our AGM as we had to get rid of a number of Bills before the Queen’s Speech later this month.  The Lib Dem AGM is important, just like any other organisation and I was sorry to miss it. 

My report in full:

My apologies for not being present to deliver this report personally, but we have a three line whip on the Criminal Justice Bill, and are dealing with six bills! I had wanted to reintroduce the tradition started by Sir Cyril of giving an annual verbal report on my year in Parliament.  

It continues to be an honour and a privilege to represent Rochdale. I fully felt the weight of Rochdale’s great parliamentarians like Richard Cobden and Sir Cyril Smith on my shoulders since being elected.

Since getting elected, my parliamentary time has been a long and a busy one – 19 months and over 140 Bills.

I was pleased to stand up against ill-thought out and faulty legislation, especially on the Government’s dubious “anti-terror” legislation. It beggars belief that the Government would push through such flawed laws for the sake of a few positive tabloid headlines. Sadly, New Labour legislation continues to be long on rhetoric and short on reality.

This year, for the first time, we even won – such as on 90 Day Detention and the Religious Hatred Bill. These are small victories when faced with a flood of inept laws, but they show that the Liberal Democrats are needed in Britain today.

Conversely, I was pleased to support the Government when they put forward Bills that were worthwhile, like the Road Safety Bill and the Animal Welfare Bill. 

As part of the Lib Dem Transport Team, I am proud to have worked on that Road Safety Bill, which I will be voting on for the final time tonight in London! It doesn’t go nearly as far as I would have liked it – the new penalties on hit and run drivers should be much harsher, for example. Some of you may remember the Rochdale case where a single underage, unlicensed driver has repeatedly stolen and driven away cars. In his first serious accident he put a young boy in a wheelchair for life, in the second he caused severe injuries to a lollipop lady. He has already served his pitifully lenient sentences, and is back on our streets, and re-offending already. Indeed, he was recently locked up again for another offence. I am disappointed that the Government did not take the opportunity to stamp hard on such atrocious behaviour. However, I do know that thanks to the work of the Lib Dem Transport Team in other parts of the Bill, that there should be fewer road deaths in years to come.

I have also been promoted to Assistant Whip, which basically means getting Lib Dem MPs voting the ‘right way’ on the day. As you can imagine, votes can sometimes get a little confusing as we debate clause after clause, or as bits of legislation come back from the House of Lords severely amended. Tonight, for example, when I am Duty Whip, we will probably be voting over a dozen times on half a dozen different bills! I don’t know what time the Parliamentary day will end – quite possibly well after the usual midnight. It can be time-consuming work, but it has given me a real insight into how Parliament works.

Of course, the most satisfying part of my job is representing the people of Rochdale. When you’re a backbencher like me, usually the most effective way of getting things done is by asking the Government questions. Sometimes these questions are asked in the House of Commons. I have been lucky to have as many Prime Minister’s Questions and Ministerial Questions as I have. These oral questions, the type you see on the news and politics programmes, are the quickest way to bring an issue to a Minister’s attention. Sometimes by showing the foolishness of the current situation you can embarrass them into giving in right then and there – this is rare though.

As often as not, real progress is made from dogged determination – letting the Government know that you will not give in and that it will be easier for them in the long run for them to give you what you want. I am sure, for example, that the only reason that the Rochdale/Oldham Metrolink extension is going ahead is because they knew they weren’t going to hear the end of it – not just from me, but from my colleague John Leech MP, as well as MPs from other parties. I quite like to fancy that my setting up an All Party Parliamentary Tram Group helped as well. We still have to secure funding to get Metrolink down to Town Centre though.

For every time you saw me on Granada News or The Politics Show talking about Rochdale Infirmary, I have sent dozens of letters demanding information and badgering them to change their mind. I have had meetings with Ministers, and doctors and patients and pressure groups. I have ploughed through their enormous documents to find the odd kernel of fact that will be useful to our cause.

We may or may not be successful in saving our local NHS services. If we’re not, it’s not going to be because we didn’t try. If we are, it will be because the people of Rochdale have come together to form a united front on this vital matter. No matter what, I will always be proud of that. I’d like to pay a special tribute to the work of Jean Ashworth and Father Arthur Neary. They, with others, have worked tirelessly to save our A&E, Childrens and Maternity services.

I’ve also got very involved in debates and discussions on asbestos since being elected. I don’t know if I was instrumental in getting the more stringent control limits for exposure to asbestos fibres that will come in to force next week. I do know that I have played a part in all debates concerning asbestos since being elected, and that the Minister had promised me stricter controls last year. 

Today I heard that I have convinced the Government to link OL11 postcodes to the Bingley weather station rather than Woodford with regards to the Cold Weather Payments Scheme. I had been contacted by two pensioners who had been denied cold weather payments last year because of this. Thanks to this little success, I hope that pensioners in Rochdale will not suffer like this this winter.

I have also tackled many other issues that concern my constituents, most notably the CSA and dentistry. Neither issue is resolved, but they have not been forgotten. The hardship caused by the fatally flawed CSA and the health impacts that the lack NHS dentistry cause are unpardonable, and cannot be left to stand.

Luckily, I think I am in a good position to do something. Those who have worked with me know that I am not afraid of hard work, or of taking on the establishment. My record in Parliament has already surpassed our previous MP – I have asked more questions than she did over the same period of time. I have already had more adjournment debates than she did over her entire eight years as MP! I know that Rochdale deserves more than a token MP who is happy to accept the benefits of being an MP without putting the graft in. In three years time I will be happy to stand on my record.

I’ve held a surgery virtually every week since I was elected – 2 hours per week where I visit each part of the constituency. I’ve dealt with hundreds of cases and taken dozens of these cases up in Parliament.

Of course none of this would be possible without the people who work with me. In Drake Street I am very lucky to have the excellent Sue and Ann, who manage the chaotic world of a constituency office with style and great ability. I do not know where I would be without them. David Hennigan is one of the handiest political agents in the business. Both Rochdale Lib Dems and I owe him a huge debt of gratitude. In London I have my researcher, Helen, who is doing an excellent job for us.

And of course, none of this would be possible without all of you; the members and activists, the deliverers and stuffers, the Councillors and the portfolio holders. We are part of a team, and each of us plays an important role.  I was delighted that the group is now running Rochdale Council and that Councillor Alan Taylor is now an excellent Leader of the Council.

This has been a difficult twelve months for the Lib Dems nationally, and many of us were unimpressed with the public rows and the public assassination of Charles Kennedy this time last year. However, I am pleased that Ming has proved himself to be a steady and thoughtful leader – a real man of substance against the spin of Blair and Cameron. I was especially pleased when he came to Rochdale in August to celebrate 100 days of the Lib Dem administration.

Labour are now a party in transition – Tony Blair is on the way out. I can’t believe that Gordon Brown will be anywhere near as popular with the electorate. With David Cameron moving the Tories forward, a hung parliament looks even more likely. The need for the Liberal Democrats, and for as many Lib Dem MPs as possible is therefore all the more important.

Together we ARE in a position to make Rochdale better, to upset Labour’s smug complacency, and the Tory’s lazy compliance.