It’s only been three weeks since a new Labour Government was elected and what is overwhelmingly clear is the extent of disaster created by the Tories is worse than we thought.
Our new Government has inherited a £20 billion black hole in its accounts created by the Tories’ fiscal mismanagement. We will not be able to fix everything overnight but we have made a start and there has already been many positive changes to deliver the change that the people of this country have been crying out for.
This week I voted for our first piece of legislation, The Passenger Railway Service (Public Ownership) Bill, our first step towards nationalisation.
After decades of failures from privatisation and incompetence our railways are broken, the reform of our railways is an issue that I am extremely passionate about, transport in the North is regularly raised by businesses and constituents from bus networks to rail. It is a priority for me and our region.
As co-chair of the All Party Parliamentary Group for the North East, we heard transport is the number one priority for the North East, our next meeting as soon as recess is over in September will continue to speak up for our region’s economy and the challenges our constituents face on a daily basis such as transport.
This week I also voted for the King’s Speech. This will be our pathway to fix the country, as well as this we have already announced a breakthrough in negotiations with Junior Doctors, offered teachers a well-deserved pay award, stopped non-essential spending on external consultants and the closure of tax loopholes and clamp down on tax avoidance.
Additionally, Labour has already begun the search for a Covid corruption Commissioner to recover the money owed to the British public, lost through fraud, we want the money the Tories gave away back and we won’t leave any stone unturned to trace it.
Whilst the new government will work tirelessly to ensure they can deliver from day one, it is important that we also understand the scale of the challenge and allow us the opportunity to put things in place.Locally I am carrying on with our surgeries over summer and street surgeries from September, bringing me and my office to your doorstep – and look out for my leaflet coming through your door this summer.
You can always email me at [email protected]