As an MP, I am often asked to help with a range of local, national and international issues. This week all three came up.
Monday started with a flurry of emails from parents of children at Springfield Primary school. I believe that all children should be able to get access to first class education so that they will be able to make their own decisions and choices about their future careers. That is why I always endeavour to support our schools.
New guidance has come from structural engineers about the safety of the RAAC concrete that was used to construct parts of the school in the 1970s. The school has been inspected and a number of classrooms have had to be closed. Repairs are due to take place over the summer, but parents were very concerned that their children would face “remote learning” for the rest of term.
I spoke to the Head Teacher, Jackie Pick, and the head of Education from Essex County Council. Boswells and Beaulieu Academy, had offered to let the Year 5 and Year 6 pupils use rooms in the nearby secondary schools until the end of this term. However a special licence was needed. I called the Department for Education and asked for the licence to be fast tracked. It came through on Tuesday, so the children will be back in classrooms next week. I also met with the minister responsible who asked me to find out whether the school needed more support.
Therefore, on Friday I visited the school so I could see the situation first hand. I have now written to the minister to ask for extra pre-fabricated classrooms to be ordered for the autumn term in case the roof work is not completed, for help to find some storage space for teaching materials and equipment that has had to be moved out of classrooms and whether some additional emergency funding can be given to help the school and pre-school with the extra costs they are incurring.
Thank you to head teacher Jackie and all her staff as well as to parents and children for working so hard to find solutions at this difficult time for the school.
In Chelmsford, I also support the businesses small and large that employ so many people locally. It was great to join staff at Teledyne-e2v who were holding a very special event to encourage more women to come into engineering. It is a world leading company in space and manufacturers the components that make cancer scanners. Year 9 girls from five different schools had been invited into the company for a fun taster morning to learn more about a career in engineering.
Chelmsford is home to the largest group of insurance companies anywhere outside London. The UK is the world leader in insurance. Insurance companies had come to speak to me about new global rules that are being introduced on taxation. These are intended to make sure that international companies, like tech companies, pay a fair share of tax.
However, the insurance sector is concerned that some other countries may not put the new rules in place, which would leave our UK industry at a competitive disadvantage. Following a lot of discussions, I was pleased to hear from the Chancellor that he will keep a close eye on how other countries are acting and report back in future autumn statements and spring budgets.
In Chelmsford, I also meet staff and doctors at Rivermead Gate Practice. I am concerned about challenges that those living in the Tile Kiln area have faced accessing GPs services since the closure of Wood Street. Rivermead Gate told me that they are now keeping some appointments available for later in the day so please do contact them if you need medical assistance. If you are a patient of Rivermead Gate and have recent experience of their service, please do email me as it would be very helpful to hear first-hand experiences.
Internationally, I was contacted on Tuesday by a small UK charity, Waging Peace, that supports the British-Sudanese community. Twenty years ago a genocide occurred in Darfur, Sudan. 300,000 people were murdered and many hundreds of thousands of others also lost their lives as a consequence. Waging Peace told of recent evidence that a systemic ethnic cleansing is underway again, right now. I quickly arranged to meet them the following day, it was clear that this needed to be urgently brought to the world’s attention. We decided that, as chair of the All Party Group for Sudan and South Sudan, I would apply for an Urgent Question in the House of Commons.
An Urgent Question is a chance for a back bench MP to highlight an issue. The Speaker does not grant these often. It is the first time I had asked for an Urgent Question, but it was granted.
Therefore, on Thursday morning I was able to lay out the stories of what British Sudanese residents have told about what is happening to their families. One of the waring military generals has ordered troops to “Change the DNA” of this part of Sudan. Boys over the age of ten are being killed, girls over 12 are being raped. Water sources, hospitals, pharmacies and food storage facilities have been destroyed. We do not know the death toll, but an eye witness has said its already in the thousands. People trying to escape the danger are being shot. It is horrific.
We are incredibly lucky to live free of fear, and in peace in the UK. Where war and violence happens elsewhere this can impact on our own security. I believe we should use our voices to support those who are being oppressed. Too often the eyes of the world do not focus on genocide until it is too late.
Since making my Urgent Question, this desperate situation has been picked up by many different press outlets and a meeting has happened at the United Nations Security Council. I hope that this helps put pressure on the warring generals to protect civilian lives.
