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News from
Debbie Abrahams MP
For Oldham East and Saddleworth
March 2017
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fDear <<First Name>> <<Last Name>>
This is the March edition of my e-newsletter.
This edition contains information on my 'No to PIP cuts' campaign, the Budget, constituency and parliamentary updates.
For more regular news you can like my page on Facebook, follow me on twitter or visit my website.
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Debbie Abrahams MP |
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The Tories failed budget
Theresa May’s government is in disarray after having to take a humiliating U-turn on raising National Insurance (NI) for the self-employed, just seven days after the Budget.
The Chancellor’s decision to raise National Insurance for the self-employed put unnecessary pressure on 4,700 people in my constituency and 4.8 million people across the UK as a whole. So it’s good news that the Government listened to Labour and business groups like the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB), when we said it was wrong to go ahead with an unfair £2bn tax rise on low and middle earners.
I set up Labour’s Self-Employment Commission last November and on 30th March held a Self-Employment Summit with the FSB and others to scope out the work that has to be done to support the growing numbers of self-employed workers (4.8m), including looking at how to protect them when they become ill or injured, as well as tackling ‘bogus’ self-employment where some unscrupulous employers shirk their responsibilities. I have a self-employed constituent working in the construction industry who was worried about taking time off when he had a hernia! Read more on the u-turn here.
Governing is about choices. Labour will make different choices, through a fair taxation system where those who can afford to pay their fair share, introducing a Real Living Wage of £10 per hour making sure work always pays, reviving our NHS and care system, and transforming our social security system, so that our NHS, care and social security support is there for any one of us in our time of need. Read more here.
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Brexit: Triggering Article 50
This week, Theresa May has set out Britain’s principles and objectives for the Article 50 talks in a letter to European Council president, Donald Tusk. The six-page letter gave formal notification the UK is leaving the European Union. It then lays down Britain’s key demands for the negotiations.
They include our future trading relationship, security cooperation and protecting the rights of UK citizens living in the EU. It sets out 7 principles for the negotiations which reflect the 6 ‘tests’ Labour set for the Government on the negotiations. Most alarming though is the Government saying that they will decide ‘where it is appropriate’ to transpose EU law and protections into UK law.
Labour will not allow the costs of exit to be borne by working people and their families – we will fight for the best possible Brexit deal for the British people. We will fight to ensure workers’ rights and protections are secured, and for the Government to deliver ‘the exact same benefits’ (David Davis’ words) as tariff-free access to the Single market and customs union. We cannot allow British jobs to be jeopardised by a Tory chaotic Brexit.
Labour are committed to setting up a national investment bank and regional development banks to help unlock £500bn of investment so that no community is left behind. Britain must ensure European Investment Bank access is maintained during Brexit and that European structural funds are properly compensated. As the Government start the Brexit process, we will challenge them at every stage to defend & protect our shared rights and values.
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NO to PIP cuts
As Shadow Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, I have been working to oppose the Government’s emergency PIP regulations since they were sneaked out by negative statutory instrument on 23rd February.
Worryingly, this type of legislation can become law without a debate or a vote in Parliament. The new regulations in effect overturn the rulings of two tribunals that say it should expand the reach of Personal Independence Payments (PIP) to include 164,000 people with such debilitating mental health conditions that they are unable to leave their homes unaccompanied.
Despite over 185,000 people signing a 38 degrees petition within a week, huge support from MPs and this issue being raised in Urgent Questions, Points of Order, Work and Pensions Questions, Prime Minister’s Questions, Business Questions and an Early Day Motion, the Government has failed to schedule a debate before the new regulations come into force.
To try and address this I applied for and was granted an emergency debate by Mr Speaker on 29th March. It was clear from contributions by MPs from all parties that there was a great deal of anger about the Government’s decision to shift the goalposts on PIP assessment rules. As I explained in my speech, the Government has now hastily scheduled a debate and vote for Wednesday 19th April. Even if we win the vote then, without your support we may not be able to overturn these changes to PIP support. Please WRITE TO THE PRIME MINISTER ASKING HER TO THINK AGAIN –remind her of the support she said she would provide to those ‘who may not have physical injuries [from the Westminster attacks] but may need other support’.
The vote came just a day before the Government published the Second Independent Review by Paul Gray into PIP Assessments. It is extremely worrying, although not surprising given claimants’ experiences, that the Review finds there is a lack of public trust in the fairness and consistency of PIP decisions. The Government must now take speedy and effective action to overhaul the PIP assessment process, including revoking the emergency PIP regulations discriminating against people with mental health conditions, reviewing the contracts of private assessment providers and ensuring a ‘get it right first time’ approach to assessments. Read more here.
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Cuts to Oldham's School budget
I am deeply disappointed with the reply from a Government minister to my letter asking about cuts in funding for schools across Oldham.
In May 2016 I met with Schools Minister Nick Gibb MP, alongside my colleagues, Jim McMahon MP and Angela Rayner MP, to discuss the many challenges facing schools in Oldham and the findings of the Oldham Education Commission. But since then the Government has made proposals to change the school Funding Formula.
The new formula will see income per pupil in Oldham East and Saddleworth, for example, cut by a massive £490 per pupil by 2019/20. In my letter to Ms Greening I pointed that there will be an 8% cut in per pupil spending by 2019-20 according to the National Audit Office, the same figure given by the independent Institute for Fiscal Studies.
Unfortunately, the response I received to my letter was deeply disappointing and did absolutely nothing to address the specific concerns I raised about the effect of the cuts on schools in Oldham. In fact, I would go so far as to say it was a non-reply, reply. I believe that every child deserves the best possible start in life, and that an excellent education is fundamental to this. These unashamed Tory cuts to schools’ budget will mean that, for many children, this is simply not possible. Read more here.
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Shadow Work and Pensions update
As ever, there has been a great deal of work in Parliament particularly in my role as Shadow Work and Pensions Secretary.
My colleague, Margaret Greenwoood MP launched Labour’s National Conversation about Child Poverty and Life Chances in Wirral on Friday 3rd March. Both Margaret and I spoke at the event which was attended by a wide range of people from the area including local Councillors, representatives from voluntary and community organisations, the NHS, the police, local schools and churches. It is the first in a series of small group discussions, going across the country, where participants have the opportunity to contribute their views on the impact on children of growing up in poverty, what the causes of child poverty are and what should be done to tackle it. As Margaret said, the aim of the Labour’s campaign is to raise awareness of child poverty as an issue of national importance and to develop a dialogue with individuals and organisations about what needs to be done to reduce it. Read more here.
I wrote to the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions calling on him to rethink plans to cut social security support for bereaved families. According to the Childhood Bereavement Network the reformed payment, known as the Bereavement Support Payment, will see 91% of families supported for a shorter time than under the current system. 75% of families will also be worse off in cash terms. Organisations like the Childhood Bereavement Network have also raised serious concerns about the changes, particularly that instead of parents receiving support until their youngest child leaves school – or for a maximum period of 20 years – they will receive financial help for just 18 months. I have called on the Government to scrap the reforms, and have promised a review into social security provision for bereaved families. Read more here.
Last month, I spoke for Labour on a debate on intergenerational fairness and pensions.
It is clear that many young people are facing much more difficult times than people of my generation. Their student debts will be around their necks for a long while, and many are not in a position to buy their own homes. Over the course of their retirement, those in their 40s will be £13,000 worse off than otherwise, those in their 30s will be £17,000 worse off, and those in their 20s will be £20,000 worse off. A continued above-inflation rise will not only benefit those who are retiring now, but will be enjoyed by generations who are to retire. That is one of the central reasons for Labour’s commitment to maintaining the triple lock beyond 2020. We differ from the Government in that regard, but underpinning our decision is the issue of inequalities within generations. We must not trade off the inequality of one generation against the poverty of another. Read more here.
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