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CONTENTS
Coronavirus update
Constituency update
Parliamentary business
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News from
Debbie Abrahams MP

For Oldham East and Saddleworth

May 2020

Contacting me during Covid-19

In response to the Covid 19 pandemic, and to reduce the risk to my constituents and team, my constituency office is closed. However my team and I are here to help you with any issue you may have. Advice surgery appointments will be held over the phone only. Read more
here.

Send an e-mail to: abrahamsd@parliament.uk 

Call the Oldham office:
Mon & Tues between 9am and 1pm: 07494553005 Weds & Fri between 9am and 1pm: 07495995509

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Website: www.debbieabrahams.org.uk
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Dear <<First Name>> <<Last Name>>

This latest edition contains an update on the Coronavirus and my activities across the constituency and in Parliament.

For more regular news you can like my page on Facebook, follow me on twitter  or visit my website.
 

Debbie Abrahams MP
Covid-19 update

We are now over 8 weeks into the coronavirus lock down. I know this has been a challenging time for many of you and will continue to be so. From restrictions to your movements, not being able to see family and friends, businesses closing, to those still working through the crisis in key sectors and people in non-essential sectors who have had to continue to work on site through this crisis, this pandemic has fundamentally changed the way we live our lives. Sadly, far too many people have also lost their lives.

However, we have also seen a brilliant community response where people have come together to support neighbours or those that are isolated and vulnerable in many innovative ways. I want to thank everyone for their efforts. 

Last weekend we also saw the Government relaxing some rules on the lock down as a new alert system was introduced. See the government guidelines
here


I want to support the government to get this right, and that is why we need a national consensus on what happens next but we need to be honest with the public about the challenges ahead. 

It is clear that some mistakes were made at the beginning of this crisis. The government was slow to implement the lock down, slow on testing and slow to get PPE to frontline workers.


It is also clear there is an ongoing crisis in our care homes. The Prime Minister has promised to get a grip of this, but several months into this crisis there are still huge problems. Recent figures from the Office of National Statistics sadly show that 40% of deaths from Covid-19 were in care homes. We need to make sure that care homes are safe for staff and residents. Social care provided in residential facilities or at home can no longer be a Cinderella service.

Labour has set out seven core principles that need to be considered by the government to ensure public services, businesses and people are supported and kept safe. Find them here.  For me, having local mass testing and tracing are essential before any lift of the lockdown so that any new infections can be quickly identified and isolated. 

There are still serious gaps in support for childcare, protection for workers and guidance to providers on the use of public transport with social distancing. People rightly need confidence before they go back out to work, travel or use public services. The government must now publish the scientific evidence behind all aspects of their recent announcement changing the requirement from ‘Stay at Home’ to ‘Stay Alert’. 


The North West is now seeing the highest number of cases in England and the second highest mortality rate - as Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham has said, any relaxation of the lock down should only be when the whole country is on a clear downward trajectory. 

The Government should take ultimate responsibility and not place the burden of a second wave of Covid-19 on workers (many on low incomes) who cannot work from home. Let’s not forget some staff in essential, and non-essential, sectors have already been working (on site) through this crisis and my inbox has been full with staff concerned about their safety.  Clear guidance for employers must also be put in place before people return to work. Read more
here.

It is also allows time for us to reflect on the type of society we want and how we come out of this crisis. The poverty and inequality that has pervaded our country for too long, and that has seen the poorest and people from Black or Asian communities twice as likely to die from Covid-19, must not be allowed to continue in this pandemic’s aftermath. As eminent economists have argued, the wrong response to the pandemic is more austerity. Economies do NOT run on the same principles as a household budget. 

I hope an outcome from this reflection is that we can show how valued our key workers are and we develop a plan for a more sustainable economy I will certainly keep making the argument for change.
Read an article I wrote during the first few weeks of lock down.


Constituency update

During the Covid-19 pandemic I have been working closely with Oldham Council and local partners, Greater Manchester Mayor, Andy Burnham and MPs to ensure we are raising concerns from constituents locally and also feeding back issues at a national level. This includes weekly Covid-19 briefings. We will continue to work collaboratively throughout this crisis.

I co-chaired a webinar for Oldham and Saddleworth businesses with Jim McMahon MP and a panel of experts. Over 50 local businesses joined the session including people from pubs, manufacturing companies, independent shops, the events industry, digital businesses, solicitors and marketing agencies. Like Jim, I found the seminar a really useful way to add to my understanding of the issues that business owners are facing during the current coronavirus crisis.

Over the last few weeks much of my casework has focused on supporting these businesses and lobbying the Government on the gaps in funding support that still exist. It was disappointing to hear in the webinar that large businesses are still delaying paying their suppliers promptly causing real difficulties with cash flow. I will continue to put pressure on the Government about this. Small and medium sized businesses are the backbone of our economy. How we support them now will determine the rate at which we can re-build our economy as we gradually emerge from this total lockdown. Read more
here. 

There have been a whole host of issues that my team and I have tried to support constituents with since lockdown started in the middle of March. At the start of lockdown, I was receiving over 70 enquiries a day from people being stranded overseas to those unsure if they qualified for the Job Retention Scheme. There were also many key workers who were understandably concerned about their safety particularly regarding the lack of PPE available to them, including NHS and care staff, or the difficulty to social distance in their workplace. I’m pleased to say that this is easing now.

At the moment, I’m working with constituents who have been asked to return to work, despite childcare not being available. Unfortunately the lack of clear Government guidance is putting employees and employers in a very difficult situation. Others are just struggling to manage after falling through the gaps of the different Government schemes.


This past month, I have also been volunteering at Oldham Leisure Centre which has been set up as a temporary central hub for Oldham Foodbank. I am so proud of how Oldham and Saddleworth as a whole has responded to the crisis, really showing our sense of community. In spite of the incredible demands the Foodbank has done an amazing job in supplying food parcels across the borough. I understand their innovation has been heralded across the country (more on this later!). As well as being really well organised this is down to how hard everyone is working to support constituents. Thank to all the staff and volunteers involved in this effort. If you're interested in helping out, you can do so
here.

It was an absolute honour to win the Patchwork Foundation’s Labour People’s Choice MP of the Year 2019 award. This was announced in April after being delayed because of the General Election. The awards honour MPs on an annual basis recognising those who have worked hard to support communities through their policy making or campaigns they have supported. I’m so proud and so grateful to everybody who took part and voted for me. Read more here.

 *[|MC:TOPSHARE|*

Parliamentary update

You may be aware that Parliament is working differently during Covid-19. The parliamentary authorities have introduced new rules which allow up to 120 MPs at any one time to take part in proceedings virtually, while around 50 could remain in the chamber under strict social distancing rules. This also includes steps to allows MPs to vote remotely. I called for a digital parliament to be put in place in early April so I very much welcome this change.

However I am concerned by recent comments from, The Leader of the House, Jacob Rees-Mogg MP who said virtual voting was likely to come to an end soon and wanted MPs to move "as quickly as possible" to "physical ways of working".  Ending the successful hybrid virtual system flies in the face of the government's own public health advice. The priority must be protecting the health and well-being of all those who work in parliament. It's also important that MPs travelling from across the country do not increase the risk of transmitting or spreading the virus to others.

Under these new virtual proceedings, I told the Chancellor that only 3,900 Oldham small businesses out of 7,000 have benefited from his decision to use the Small Business Rate Relief option for small business grants instead of an HMRC delivery mechanism to support them. I wrote to him about this 6 weeks ago. However, I am still waiting to receive an answer. Watch here.

During the Work and Pensions Select Committee session on 23rd April, I queried why the Government Minister for Disabled People had failed to provide any additional support for disabled people since the Covid lockdown, and that this was in the context of Government policies which have particularly hit disabled people over the last 10 years. Watch here. I also asked Justin Tomlinson about access to social security for people who are terminally ill. Although I was told that payments are still being fast-tracked by the Minister, evidence from charities the next week suggested otherwise. Watch
here.

On 5th May, I also chaired a virtual meeting of the Universal Credit (UC) All Party Parliamentary Group which focused on how Covid-19 was affecting those on UC. Over 120 people attended the meeting including MPs and charities such as Citizens Advice and the Child Poverty Action Group. A set of recommendations have been produced from this meeting which I will be writing to the Work and Pensions Secretary about.


I have received significant concerns from staff working during the Covid-19 lock down, particularly in online retailer warehouses in our borough.  Many have raised concerns over safety and maintaining social distancing measures. The government's lack of clarity for non essential sectors has caused serious concerns. I wrote to Business Secretary Alok Sharma with neighbouring MPs Tony Lloyd and Jim McMahon raising our concerns about staff safety. As the Government now begins to relax lock down measures it is even more important that guidelines for employers are clarified. Read more here.

In late March, I signed a letter to the Prime Minister calling for the creation of a Coronavirus Compensation Scheme for front line workers who are risking their lives for our collective safety. Whilst I welcomed the Health Secretary's announcement of a life assurance scheme for NHS and social care staff it left other key workers on the front line of the crisis uncovered. I will continue to call for comprehensive support for all front line workers.

I have also co-signed a letter sent to Universities Minister, Michelle Donelan, regarding the concerns of two million university students during the COVID-19 crisis in relation to exams, accommodation costs, and financial difficulties. This is a serious issue up and down the country.  We’re calling on the minister to establish a flexible approach to assessment, refunds of rents on unoccupied accommodation, and a temporary suspension of the rule preventing students claiming universal credit. So far, their concerns have been overlooked in this crisis. We’re asking the Government to give them reassurance without further delay. Read more
here.

I’d like to take this opportunity to thank all of my team for all they have done to support me, and most importantly, my constituents during this crisis. They really make me proud.

Finally I wish you all the very best during these strange times. Do take care of yourselves and stay safe. 

Please go to my
website to read my latest articles and speeches. 


https://twitter.com/UKLabour/status/1044980165103644677
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