Community newsletter - January 9, 2012

Last week I met with the new chairman of Princess Alexandra Hospital.There is some good news as our local NHS has benefited from an extra £24 million of funding since the 2010 General Election - but there are still genuine problems that need to be resolved. I hope to work more on these in the New Year.
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This Friday, I held one of my regular MP's advice surgeries, helping Harlow residents with problems and worries that that they have.

This week the issues covered everything from housing, to a social entrepreneur who wants to start a new charity.

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In the week ahead, Parliament will meet again for the first time in 2012.

When I am out and about in the town centre I often ask Harlow residents what they want me to champion in Parliament on their behalf.

The main answers that I get are jobs, petrol prices, immigration, apprenticeships,, and the rising cost of living.
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What do you think?

Please email me your thoughts at halfon4harlow@roberthalfon.com

But whatever happens in the months and weeks ahead 2012 will have some fantastic highlights to look forward to - the Olympics, the Queen's Diamond Jubilee. At the same time, there will also be genuine difficulties which we cannot sweep under the carpet.

The debt-crisis in Europe is still a real threat to Britain.

As Harlow's local MP, I will do everything in my power to help keep our economy moving.
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Recent news

On Christmas Day I visited patients at Princess Alexandra Hospital, Harlow, with Harlow Hospital Radio DJ Ian Jackson on Christmas Day.

This was my second Christmas Day going around the wards wishing patients a Merry Christmas.

It was good to be able to give patients some cheer, especially since they had to spend Christmas in hospital.

Going round with Ian Jackson is always good fun, and we were able to take special song requests which Ian played on Harlow Hospital Radio.

I was pleased to also be able to say thank you to hard-working hospital staff - cleaners, porters, nurses and doctors - who had given up their Christmas to dedicate themselves to looking after the sick.

I also met some of the staff and pay tribute to many of the Princess Alexandra Hospital volunteers, including the League of Friends, all of whom helped spread the Christmas message in the hospital.

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It was with great sadness that I heard about the death of Patrick McClarnon.

Patrick was one of the finest men one could ever meet. He was a huge influence on me. Many a weekend we canvassed together, or manned campaign stalls in Broadwalk.

He was one of those kind of individuals who would never say no - turning up to help whenever he was asked.


Patrick stood for something special. Deep Conservative values of aspiration, decency, hard-work, respect and a love for tradition. He didn't just stand for them, he embodied them in every being and fibre of his body.

Every word he spoke, every action, everything he did - reflected what he was about. He was an example to us all. He made our wrongs right again.

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All Conservative MPs were sent a report card from Prime Minister David Cameron detailing Government policies during 2011. You can read the information here

Apprenticeships are the answer to Youth Unemployment

Earlier today, I urged the Goverment to use public procurement, and state contracts, as a way of radically boosting the number of British apprentices.

This is something that I first proposed back in June 2011, in a speech you can read HERE.

The Government's reply was encouraging, as the full exchange was:

The Secretary of State for Work and Pensions (Mr Iain Duncan Smith): Work experience and apprenticeships are central to improving the prospects of young unemployed people. We are making up to 100,000 work experience placements available and strengthening the links between the work experience programme and apprenticeships. We are also providing additional Jobcentre Plus help for 16 and 17-year-old jobseeker’s allowance claimants and offering earlier entry into the Work programme. It is worth reminding ourselves that of the 991,000 16 to 24-year-olds who are unemployed under the International Labour Organisation measure, 270,000 are full-time students. Finally, my hon. Friend the Member for Harlow (Robert Halfon) will be aware that Harlow is one of the Government’s new enterprise zones.

Robert Halfon: I am, of course, delighted that Harlow is an enterprise zone. Does my right hon. Friend agree that one way of cutting youth unemployment is to encourage Government contractors to hire apprentices? Figures from the House of Commons Library show that if just one apprentice was hired for every £1 million of public procurement, it would instantly create 238,000 apprenticeships and cut youth unemployment by a quarter.

Mr Duncan Smith: My hon. Friend is right. Under the new arrangements, suppliers must provide an apprenticeships and skills report within six months of the contract start date. The idea is that they will periodically show their progress towards meeting a commitment to employ 5% of apprentices in delivering the Department for Work and Pensions contract to which they are entitled. Work programme providers will be paid primarily for the results that they achieve, which means that they will be under pressure to do a similar thing.

by Robert Halfon - www.roberthalfon.blogspot.com

More Power to Parliament

I have written on a previous Blog posting (http://roberthalfon.blogspot.com/2010/07/quiet-revolution.html), how there is a move - albeit slowly - to re-balance the power away from Government and transfer it to the elected Parliament. Select Committees - the bodies that examine the work of Government Departments - are acquiring more powers. Their members are now elected which gives the Committees real authority.

Bit by bit, Select Committees are moving towards becoming like their American counterparts. Some Committees like the Public Administration Select Committee, now have the ability to approve appointments to non-departmental public bodies (otherwise known as Quangos).

This trend has continued with the recent Government announcement about Departmental reports and transparency.

The Coalition has determined that each Ministerial Department will not only publish monthly reports on the Internet, but that Select Committees will be given power to check whether the 'milestones' set out in the reports are being met. This should increase the influence of Select Committees, as they will now have the ability to call the Government to account as never before.

My hope is that Select Committees will acquire similar rights and influence of Congressional and Senate Committees. The way things are going, Commons Select Committees will make a real difference to our body politic.

P.S. Yesterday, I asked a question about the power of Select Committees to Oliver Letwin (Cabinet Office Minister):
Hansard source (Citation: HC Deb, 8 November 2010, c29)⁠

Robert Halfon (Harlow): As a member of the Public Administration Committee I welcome the plans to shift some of this on to Select Committees. Will my right hon. Friend set out how the reports could be judged by those Committees and how their powers could be increased, so as to increase further the power of the legislature over the Executive?

Oliver Letwin (Minister of State, Cabinet Office; West Dorset, Conservative): My hon. Friend is absolutely right that the Select Committees play a vital role in that respect. This approach puts vastly more power in the hands of the Select Committees, because the biggest obstacle to their power is, of course, lack of information-and this approach opens the whole thing up. This is not just a question of the structural reform plans and the dates, on which of course Committees can interrogate, as they can interrogate explanations when things go wrong; it is also about the details of the input costs-what we are putting in-the things that have been achieved on the ground and the outcomes, by which I mean how good it is for the final customer. That gives a Select Committee the ability to haul the relevant Secretary of State up before it and say, "Look, you said you were going to do this." The Committee could then say: "You did not do it"; "You did it, but at a greater cost than you said"; "You did it at the cost but it did not turn out to produce things"; or "It did produce things but the outcomes were not good enough." That is a very powerful interrogative tool. Hon. Members may ask why we would subject ourselves to this. The answer is because we think that it is how we will produce a better Government.

Redistributing Opportunity

What's the best description of the direction of this Government? I think I heard it today on BBC Radio 4. Former leader of the Liberal Party, Paddy Ashdown, described its main mission as 'redistributing opportunity'. This is a great explanation. At present opportunities for the many are few and far between as power is so centralised in the hands of the few - in essence the state.

The purpose of the Coalition is to diffuse opportunity to the many: allowing parents to set up their own schools, academies to be free from local bureaucratic control, enabling people power to veto excessive council tax, and have a real say on housing and planning decisions. Redistributing opportunity, means lowering taxes for the lower paid, to help end the poverty trap and ensure that less people are on benefits. In health, it is about getting rid of Quangos like the Strategic Health Authorities and putting GPs in charge, combined with more patient choice. On crime, it gives local people the opportunity to choose the kind of policing they want for their neighbourhood, through the election of Police Commissioners. With the Big Society, it devolves power and resources to community, voluntary and charity groups, to put the community in charge of their own neighbourhoods.

'Redistributing opportunity' has great potential, and could end up as a really exciting rallying cry. I hope it becomes the reforming mission of this government.

by Robert Halfon - www.roberthalfon.blogspot.com

Car clamped by the DVLA

Unbelievable but true. According to the Daily Mail newspaper today, the Driver Vehicle Licensing Agency are selling our license details to private clamping companies, making a profit of over £40 million. I don't remember being asked, if my private information could be sold in this way. It seems incredible that the Agency, that is supposed to keep our details confidential, is at liberty to sell driver's details to these kind of companies. Many car clamping organisations behave incredibly badly towards motorists, who may have committed a small parking error, and are often made to suffer by paying an extortionate financial penalty.

I have been victim to clamping on two occasions when I forgot to display a permit. Showing the correct permit to the clamping company was to no avail, and I had to fork out over £100 in order to free my car.

The truth is that clamping companies are a menace. In my view, the only people who should be allowed to clamp cars, should be the police, and even that should be done sparingly. There should be an urgent review as to the way in which clampers work. Moreover the selling of our own private data to such companies by the Government should be stopped immediately.

You can't open the window

I was in a Hotel not so long ago, baking hot, so I tried to open the window. It was locked, so I called the reception and asked for a window key. The response was as follows (I kid you not): "I am sorry Sir, we can't open the windows due to health and safety legislation". There are countless examples of ridiculous health and safety laws that are so absurd, yet infringe upon the lives of millions of our fellow citizens up and down the country. Health and Safety, whilst necessary in some cases, has, too often become yet another way in which Government regulates and interferes with people's daily lives.

For this reason, I was really pleased to see that David Cameron has given a speech today, on this subject, and announced a fundamental review of all Health and Safety regulations, were a Conservative Government to be elected. Mr Cameron has said:

"Excessive rules have given the impression that we have a right to a risk-free life and that impression has been exacerbated by prominent claims and pay-outs. The consequence has been spiralling costs and a slow death of discretion, judgement and social responsibility... For every piece of health and safety legislation, we need to ask whether it fulfils a useful purpose – and if not, it must go. And we must bring some common sense to the laws surrounding compensation."

"I want people to know that with the Conservatives, government will let you get on with your life without unnecessary rules and regulations. I want everyone to know that with the Conservatives, if you do good, get involved and make a contribution, the system will back you."

I could not agree more.

P.S. You can read more details of what Mr Cameron is proposing HERE and HERE.

Government Housing benefit changes hurt the vulnerable

How can it be that Housing benefit system is failing Harlow's most vulnerable tenants?

With my involvement with Harlow Homeless Centre, (the picture shows a visit made by David Cameron to the HHC in 2006), some months ago, I was asked to meet with a Landlord (Andrew Hammill), and tenant who were concerned about the Government's plans to change Housing benefit rules. Both Mr Hammill and the tenant said it would have a detrimental effect. I subsequently lobbied Shadow Housing Minister Grant Shapps MP, who came to visit the HHC to discuss this very issue with Director Patsy Dye. I am glad to say, that the Conservative Housing team have listened - and acted.

The primary problem is that these changes are harming the most vulnerable tenants and reducing the availability of affordable accommodation.

Last year, Labour Ministers introduced a new ‘Local Housing Allowance’, with housing benefit being direct to the tenant rather than to the landlord. But vulnerable tenants often struggle to manage their finances and spend their rent money on other things. Homeless charity, Crisis, has warned that this can result in rent arrears and eventually homelessness.

Landlords who were previously happy to take on tenants on housing benefit have suffered from non-payment of rent. Many landlords now routinely refuse to let to Local Housing Allowance claimants. According to the National Landlords Assocation, half of all landlords are reluctant to lend to tenants on Local Housing Allowance.

7005 people in Harlow are on local housing waiting lists, and a sizeable proportion of them are on housing benefit. Housing waiting lists have risen by 294% per cent under this Labour Government – reflecting the shortage of affordable accommodation.

I am pleased that Conservatives have pledged to change Labour’s failed policy. Tenants will be able to choose whether to have their housing allowance paid direct to their landlord. This will increase the availability of quality low-cost housing.

The issue is that Landlords are put off from renting to those on benefit, slashing the availability of decent places to live. Some tenants struggle to manage their finances, using up their benefit money by rent pay day. They get into arrears and trouble as a result.

Tenants should have greater choice, and be free to specify that their housing benefit should go direct to the landlord. This will help those most in need.

I have further and more detailed information for your perusal below:

LOCAL HOUSING ALLOWANCE

Local Housing Allowance was introduced in April 2008 and is a new way of calculating housing benefit for tenants living in the private rented sector. The housing benefit is paid direct to tenants. See here.

A recent survey by the homelessness charity, Crisis said that 82 per cent of respondents had noticed tenants falling behind on their rent since the introduction of Local Housing Allowance. The same number said that the Allowance was leading to more tenancies being terminated. More than two-thirds reported landlords “stipulating conditions over and above those requested for working tenants” while 38 per cent said that fewer landlords will accept housing benefit recipients since the introduction the new system. They warn: “These findings raise some major concerns about the way in which LHA currently operates. It appears that LHA may be working against the Government’s fundamental aims for the scheme along with Government policy to prevent and reduce homelessness.”

Crisis, Local Housing Allowance: One Year On, April 2009.

Research conducted by the National Landlords Association has found that 52 per cent of landlords have decided they would not let, or be ‘less likely’ to let, to tenants on Local Housing Allowance. A further 43 per cent of landlords who have already tried the new system said they would now be leaving this part of the market because of increased uncertainty about rent payments.There are currently 1.8 million families on the social housing waiting list.

By Rob Halfon ~ Working hard for Harlow, Hastingwood, Nazeing, Roydon & Sheering. http//roberthalfon.blogspot.com

The sophistry of the Government

So a Libyan mass murderer, Abdelbaset Ali Mohmet al-Megrahi is let free on grounds of 'compassion', and is feted and embraced by Colonel Gadaffi. The UK Government wash their hands of it, saying that "it is nothing to do with them, and entirely the responsibility of the Scottish Executive". From Foreign Secretary David Milliband, we get sophistry, and from Gordon Brown - silence. The Prime Minister of the United Kindgdom, refuses to comment on the release of the biggest mass-murderer in British history. And when we see 'Oil' deals and other commercial actions between Britain and Libya, signed by the British Government over the next few months, this of course will be an absolute co-incidence. And of course, the fact that Lord Mandelson happened to meet Gadaffi's son, Saif al-Islam Gadaffi, in Corfu on holiday, just a few days ago, was of course another similar co-incidence.

I am glad that David Cameron has condemned the release and has written to Gordon Brown asking for his views on the matter. For the Prime Minister and his Government to hide behind the Scottish Executive Government is an absolute disgrace.

The worst outcome of the release of the Lockerbie Bomber is not just an insult to the memory of the dead from Lockerbie (and their still grieving relatives and friends), but the signal it gives to terrorists and dictators around the world. It shows that Britain is a soft touch. And that is another crime in itself.

P.S. Scroll down and listen to THIS interview given by Foreign Secretary David Milliband to BBC Radio 4 yesterday. It speaks for itself.

P.P.S. See this BBC News Video clip is also quite interesting.

UPDATE: This from The Times today:

"Mr Miliband’s assertions were apparently contradicted in a Libyan television interview with Mr Gaddafi broadcast yesterday. Colonel Gaddafi’s son said that discussion of al-Megrahi’s release had always been tied up with the oil and gas business.

“In all commercial contracts, for oil and gas with Britain, [al-Megrahi] was always on the negotiating table,” he said on the Libyan channel Al Mutawassit. Tony Blair raised al-Megrahi’s case each time he visited Libya as Prime Minister, he added. “All British interests were linked to the release of Abdul Baset Ali al-Megrahi.”

UPDATE TWO: Read this brilliant article by leftist commentator Martin Bright on the subject.

By Rob Halfon ~ Working hard for Harlow, Hastingwood, Nazeing, Roydon & Sheering. http//roberthalfon.blogspot.com

Remember the Government's mortgage scheme?

This was the one which was to help hard-pressed families avoid re-possession of their home. It was announced with great fanfare by Gordon Brown some weeks ago. Well, as you will see from the weblink below, just six families have benefited in the whole country!

This is yet another example of the Government making policy on the hoof and just trying to get favourable newspaper headlines, without doing anything of substance.

It explains why their unpopularity has reached record levels. Meanwhile, record re-possessions continue and unemployment rises above 2.1 million.

You can read the weblink article about this in The Guardian, HERE.

Harlow Welfare Rights and the Judge's ruling

Its very sad that the council had been left with what the judge described as "enormous financial pressure" in the first place. As the Judge states (as quoted by the Harlow-Star):

the council had been faced with an increasingly fraught financial situation, confronted by a "perfect storm" of falling income, rising service demand and a meagre rise in Government grants".

Had not the previous Labour and Liberal Administration left the Council coffers empty, had the Government given Harlow a proper grant - only £6000, £271,000 less than the average council, had the Government not taken £13 million from Harlow housing rents every year, this difficult decision would never have been even need to be considered in the first place.

Of course I respect the ruling of the Judge and will read the full judgement.

I am sure the Council will now give further consultation to disabled and minority groups as required.

I have and will continue to urge my colleagues on the council to ensure that Harlow has good welfare advice provision.

Robert Halfon
Prospective MP for Harlow Constituency

Working Hard for Harlow, Hastingwood, Nazeing, Roydon & Sheering

Government force local residents to foot Tax Bill for Travellers Sites Consultation

It is incredible that the Government has landed Epping Forest District Council with a potential £100,000 bill after insisting it carried out a stand-alone public consultation exercise on gypsy and traveller sites in the district.
The district council has already revealed it is spending £50,000 on a consultant who is dealing solely with the issue of where in the district additional pitches should go so there was no need for this massive spend if the Government had let Epping Forest District Council plan for the future needs of travellers in our district as had always been their intention.
The council had said it would include the accommodation needs of the travelling community in its wider consultation arising from the more general targets for housing and employment set out in the East of England Plan.

Despite this the Government issued a directive to the council requiring it to deal separately with the gypsy and traveller issues by publishing a stand-alone plan last September.
While £50,000 is being spent on the council's consultant, the final bill is set to be much more. I reckon that the final cost could reach six figures when staffing costs and the cost of printing the consultation document are included.

The council ruled out sending a copy of the consultation document to every household in the areas where sites were being considered on the grounds of cost. Just how much would it have cost us if they had done that?

The council announced last week that its forward planning team had been highly commended in the authority's Dealing with the Public staff awards. While the team are to be praised for helping people and answering what must have been hundreds of inquiries, just how much officer time has been spent on this issue?

The Government has forced our local district council into spending tens of thousands of pounds unnecessarily. Thankfully this Conservative-led council is well-managed and despite the additional cost has been able to limit its council tax increase to the second lowest in Essex, but even so this £100,000, or whatever the final figure is, did not have to be spent if the Government had not waded in with unnecessary directives. That would have meant our council tax payers could have seen a lower increase in their council tax bills.