Supporting campaign for free meals for college students

I am supporting the Association of College’s No Free Lunch? campaign calling on the Government to extend the provision of free meals to college students.

If a 16 to 18-year-old from a disadvantaged background studies in a school sixth form, Academy or Free School they are provided with a free meal.

If the same student chooses to study at a further education or sixth form college they lose that entitlement.

I sponsored Nic Dakin MP’s Bill before Parliament and spoke in favour in a Commons debate on the issue earlier this year.

This disparity which sees students treated differently according to where they choose to study is inherently unfair.

I fully support the No Free Lunch? campaign and hope that this issue can be resolved as soon as possible so that all students in my constituency are treated equally.

The Association of Colleges has lodged a petition on the Number 10 website calling for an end to this unfairness.

To sign the petition, go to http://epetitions.direct.gov.uk/petitions/31069

WEEKLY NEWSLETTER - Backing call for tougher sentences for killer drivers

HIGHLIGHTS - Backing call for tougher sentences for killer drivers
TOUGHER SENTENCES FOR KILLER DRIVERS - I have given my support to a new campaign to introduce tougher penalties for dangerous drivers who kill. The website www.StopDangerousDrivers.com was launched last week with the backing of victims’ families, charities and cross party support in Parliament... Read more

FUEL DUTY - Once again I have raised the issue of the planned increase in fuel duty in the House of Commons. During a debate this week I again highlighted that the Treasury's planned 3p fuel duty rise in January will cost motorists an extra £60 a year.

BEER PRICES - During a debate in the House of Commons I was able to highlight the issue of rthe cost of beer, as part of a debate on the cost of living. I recently attended the Campaign for Real Ale’s Harlow beer festival, which was supported by small independent breweries. I believe that the big breweries have a role to play in the cost of beer generally and that we need evidence to understand whether they are partly responsible for keeping beer prices high.

SMALLER SHOPS IN HARLOW - I was sent  a fact sheet,by the Association of Smaller Shopkeepers giving some useful facts about smaller shops in Harlow.. To read the fact sheet, click here

ROBERT HALFON’S DIARY

Met with James Smith at Harlow Enterprise Centre office

Attended Grandparents' Association event at the House of Commons

Welcomed Nigel Hall and Ben, Winnie and Michael Kibirango for a tour of the House of Commons

Met with representatives from three Harlow-based businesses with a shared vision on personal development

Held a constituents' surgery at the Citizens Advice Bureau, Harlow

Met with Harlow Council chief executive Malcolm Morley

Met with members of Epping Forest Youth Council and Harlow Youth Council at the Civic Centre, Harlow

Met with Harlow TUC secretary David Forman

Campaigning at Coppice Hatch stall with Clive Souter

Met with Barn Mead residents, Harlow

Robert Halfon's latest media releases

Harlow MP Robert Halfon backs campaign to give killer drivers tougher sentences:
A new campaign to introduce tougher penalties for dangerous drivers who kill has been given support by Harlow MP Robert Halfon... Read more 

Robert Halfon's latest media coverage

THE SUN WEBSITE - Handout plea over fuel duty: Fuel duty could be frozen if ministers axed handouts for rich pensioners and cut benefit fraud, an MP has claimed... Read more

HARLOW STAR (1-11-12 edition, p8) – MP hails ‘fantastic’ turnout for biggest-ever jobs fair: More than 1,500 jobseekers flocked to Harlow Leisurezone for free career advice at the town’s biggest-ever recruitment event…

HARLOW STAR WEBSITE - Hundreds of jobseekers attend Harlow's biggest-ever recruitment fair: More than 1,500 jobseekers flocked to Harlow Leisurezone for free career advice at the town’s biggest-ever recruitment event... Read more

TELEGRAPH WEBSITE - George Osborne's 3p rise in duty 'will squeeze households for years': George Osborne's planned 3p increase in petrol duty will strain household finances for another three years and cause more pain than it raises in tax, campaigners warned today... Read more

Backing campaign to give killer drivers tougher sentences

I have given my support to a new campaign to introduce tougher penalties for dangerous drivers who kill.

The website www.StopDangerousDrivers.com was launched this week with the backing of victims’ families, charities and cross party support in Parliament.

It aims to pressure the Sentencing Council to review the guidelines which prevent Judges from handing out the tough penalties these killer drivers deserve.

It also asks the Government to consider abolishing the more lenient offence of causing death by careless driving, so anyone whose bad driving results in a death is prosecuted for causing death by dangerous driving.

Figures revealed in support of the campaign show one in three of those convicted of causing death by dangerous or careless driving escape prison.

Such inadequate sentences leave families who are already devastated by the loss of a loved one feeling justice has not been done.

Victims’ families often feel let down by the justice system when a dangerous driver who kills a loved one receives a lenient sentence.

The maximum sentence of 14 years has never been used and only one in ten of those convicted went to prison for more than 5 years. That’s why I’m backing this campaign to give drivers who kill the tough sentences they deserve.

The leading road safety charity Brake is already backing the campaign.

Brake deputy chief executive Julie Townsend said: “This campaign is crucial because letting off drivers who kill with lenient sentences, or sometimes no jail term at all, implies that driving dangerously, even when it results in loss of life and terrible suffering, is only a minor transgression.”

Some useful facts about smaller shops in Harlow

I was sent this fact sheet, by the Association of Smaller Shopkeepers. Some useful information.
RHH

Harlow Jobs Fair

Rob with Job Centre Plus

Rob with Passmores School Students

Rob with McDonalds employees and
Tony Fagg 

Rob with Rainbow People 

Rob with Anglia Ruskin University

Harlow Jobs Fair

Harlow exhibitors setting up

After many months of organising, Harlow Jobs Fair took place on Friday at the Leisure-Zone.

It was a very special day. Not only did eighty-five businesses and local organisations attend, but over fifteen hundred job-seekers came through the doors. The Jobs Fair would not have been. Made possible without the support of Harlow College, Harlow Jobs Centre Plus, SEETEC, Rainbow Services and sponsorship by Tesco's, Smiths and other volunteers like Ian Hudson from the Chamber of Commerce, Mike Jackson and the Deputy Mayor of Bishops Stortford, Cllr Janice Elliot.

We were lucky to have Monster, and other recruitment specialists offering training on CVs and interviews. Companies from Asda to Barclays and our public services in the NHS and armed forces were offering vacancies. Harlow Trade Unions (the local TUC) were also there to offer advice on employment rights.

Around six-hundred jobs have been created this year in Harlow, with the number of apprenticeships up in the past year by seventy-eight percent. But unemployment remains a serious problem, with many finding it very tough to find work. That is why I decided to set up the Jobs Fair - an event I would like to do again in 2013, providing we can raise sponsorship and support.

Hopefully, with the many companies at the Jobs Fair offering employment, Friday's event will have made a real difference.

You can see more HERE on this Video by Harlow TV.

RHH

Weekly newsletter - Making a case for new M11 junction

HIGHLIGHTS - Making a case for new M11 junction
PETROL CAMPAIGN - This week The Sun newspaper highlighted my campaign against an increase in fuel duty. Research by the PetrolPromise.com website has revealed that a plan to increase fuel duty by 3p a litre will cost motorists an extra £60 a year.
You can read The Sun article here

BARN MEAD FIRE - This week in Harlow we’ve witnessed the very worst of human suffering, and the best of humanity. People of all faiths, all backgrounds, have united to offer support to Dr Abdul Shakoor. We have been reminded not just of the strength and kindness of Harlow’s community, but also of the dedication of our public services – particularly the role of Harlow’s fire officers, schools, police, our doctors and nurses... Read more

TRANSPORT INFRASTRUCTURE AND NEW M11 JUNCTION - This week I had the opportunity to renew my call for a new M11 junction and for extra train capacity into London during a debate on Essex infrastructure... You can see the video of the debate here

HARLOW JOBS FAIR - Eighty local employers exhibited at the Harlow Jobs Fair at the Harlow Leisurezone on Friday. The event, the first of its kind in the town, was a great success and featured local, national and international businesses and organisations. There was also a number of workshops to help jobseekers with their CVs and interview techniques. For pictures from the event click here

 

HARLOW NAMED TOWN TEAM PARTNER - Harlow will be receiving a £10,000 boost following the announcement that it is to be a Town Team Partner: As part of the arrangements Harlow Town Centre Partnership Town Team will also be able to receive support from the Association of Town Centre Management.
The support package aims to promote shared learning and best practice with the help of retail experts and other town teams from across the country... Read more

ROBERT HALFON’S DIARY
Welcomed Harlow residents Sarah Randall, Linda Eynon, Sadie Libby, Nigel Forbes, Andrea Tonks for a tour of Parliament

Welcomed a group from Harlow Princes Trust for a tour of the House of Commons

Spoke in Westminster Hall debate, and urged Government to invest in Essex roads and railways, including a new M11 junction 7A near Harlow

Attended the funeral service for the six members of the Shakor family who died in the Barn Mead house fire

Attended Heart 4 Harlow Awards Dinner at the Manor of Groves Hotel, High Wych

Hosted Harlow Jobs Fair at the Harlow Leisurezone

Attended Harlow Civic Society unveiling of plaque for Alec Reeves with Stan Newens

Robert Halfon's latest media releases

Eighty companies prepare for Jobs Fair: Eighty local employers will be exhibiting at the Harlow Jobs Fair organised by Harlow MP Robert Halfon... Read more

Harlow MP Robert Halfon welcomes announcement that Harlow is a Town Team Partner: Harlow will be receiving a £10,000 boost following the announcement that it is to be a Town Team Partner... Read more 

Robert Halfon's latest media coverage

HARLOW STAR (25-10-12 edition, p22) - A community united in grief and kindness: This week in Harlow we've witnessed the very worst of human suffering and the best of humanity...

EVERYTHING HARLOW WEBSITE - Eighty companies prepare for Jobs Fair: Eighty local employers will be exhibiting at the Harlow Jobs Fair organised by Harlow MP Robert Halfon... Read more

EVERYTHING HARLOW WEBSITE - Harlow named Town Team Partner: Harlow will be receiving a £10,000 boost following the announcement that it is to be a Town Team Partner... Read more

AUTO EXPRESS WEBSITE - MP wants fuel tax on receipts: Petrol and diesel receipts should show how much of the duty paid will be spent on roads, says a Tory MP... Read more

HARLOW STAR WEBSITE - Community prays for tragic Shakoor family: More than 200 people packed out Harlow Islamic Centre this afternoon to pay their respects to the tragic victims of Monday’s fatal house fire in Barn Mead... Read more

BBC NEWS WEBSITE - MP Robert Halfon fights for breakdown on fuel bills: Conservative Harlow MP Robert Halfon has explained why he is fighting for a change in the law so motorists can be given a full breakdown on bills for fuel... Read more

HARLOW STAR (18-10-12 edition, p8) - Teens answer conference call to voice views and quiz politicians: More than 40 politically-minded young people shared their views on topical issues at a conference organised by Harlow Youth Council on Friday...

HARLOW STAR (18-10-12 edition, p13) - MP helps Lions club to deliver lifesaver bottles: Residents of a sheltered housing complex in Harlow are among the first to benefit from a local social group's extended health scheme...

BBC NEWS WEBSITE - Fuel duty campaign launched by Robert Halfon: It's autumn, the party conference season is over and it's time for the MP for Harlow to launch another campaign over fuel duty...Read more

HARLOW STAR WEBSITE - Mother and four children die in suspected arson attack: A woman and four young children have died following a suspected arson attack on their family home in Harlow this morning (October 15)... Read more