Andrew Dismore

Andrew Dismore, Labour London Assembly member and parliamentary candidate for Hendon has condemned today’s  Queen’s Speech.

 

Mr Dismore said:

 

“We have a zombie Conservative led  Government and a zombie Conservative MP with no real agenda, The last session of Parliament had the fewest number of government Bills compared to any other year since 1950 and this year’s  Queens Speech is even thinner.

 

“Hendon has a Conservative MP who spends more time boasting about   awards for his interest in dogs than in dealing with the ever growing crisis  in our local NHS.  My recent FoI request to the Health Department has shown that in over 2 years he has not raised once by correspondence, email, phone call, or meeting with ministers,  the financial situation of Barnet CCG or any  issue about  Barnet  and Chase Farm Hospitals, despite the well publicised  difficulties both organisations have been experiencing. ( for FoI response see below)

 

“We need a change of direction for Britain with a legislative programme equal to the scale of the challenge our country faces. Instead we have a Queen’s Speech that offers more of the same. Many of the measures have already been announced or indeed are simply watered down versions of things Labour has called for.  Labour would have a Queen’s Speech with bills to make work pay, reform our banks, freeze energy bills and build homes again in Britain to signal the new direction for Britain our country needs and that will need a change of government.

 

“The local and European elections show the depths of discontent with the direction of our country under the Conservative coalition Government. This is not just about the way the EU works or deep-rooted concerns about immigration, but an even deeper sense that people feel this country is heading in the wrong direction and increasingly does not work for them.

 

“Hendon people who work hard do not feel they are rewarded, with the continuing cost of living crisis showing the economic recovery is not touching ordinary Hendon families. Hendon residents are worried about the prospects for their children and whether they can lead a better life than themselves, especially whether they will be able to afford homes of their own or pay for higher education if they want to go to university. They are concerned about getting the healthcare they and their families need from the NHS in the face of  ever lengthening waiting lists and waiting times.

 

“These are big issues for our country that this Queen’s Speech should have tackled. Whether it offered a new direction for Britain to make this country work for all and not just a few at the top was the test for this Queen’s Speech. But it is a test that has been failed.

 

“On zero hour contracts it fails to ensure that those working regular hours month after month get a regular contract. On housing, it sets out plans for a one off new town with 15,000 homes, when we need at least 200,000 homes built every year. And it has nothing for families renting. There is no mention of the NHS. On immigration it does nothing to tackle the undercutting of wages.

 

“Instead Parliament should be making real progress to address the public’s discontent and set out  a new direction for Britain. A Labour  Queen’s Speech would have included:

 

• A Make Work Pay bill to reward hard work with a higher minimum wage.
• A Banking Bill that backs British business with a real British Investment Bank and new regional banks.
• A Consumers Bill to freeze energy bills until 2017 and reform the energy market
• A Housing Bill with long term reform to increase supply to 200,000 homes by 2020, and measures to end rip-off letting fees and make three year tenancies the norm.
• A Communities Bill to give people a say over pay day lenders and betting shops on their high streets.
• An Immigration Bill, to stop workers being undercut through enforcement of the minimum wage and banning recruitment agencies that only use overseas labour.
• An NHS Bill, to put a stop to its privatisation and improve access to GPs.

 

“To make that happen we need a different government, a Labour Government and a Labour MP for Hendon.”

 

FoI response from Department of Health referred to above:

 

02/06/2014

 

DE00000861019

 

Dear Mr Dismore,

 

Thank you for your request of 13 May 2014 under the Freedom of Information Act (2000).  Your exact request was:

 

“please disclose copies of all correspondence and emails and records of phone conversations or meetings between Hendon MP Matthew Offord and ministers in the department of health concerning the financial position of Barnet CCG, including in shadow form  since January 2012 to date

 

please disclose under FoI  copies of all correspondence and emails and records of phone conversations or meetings between Hendon MP Matthew Offord and ministers in the department of health concerning   Barnet  and Chase Farm Hospitals , since January 2012 to date”

 

I can confirm that the Department holds no information relevant to your request. “