Letter from Parliament - Jim Dobbin MP

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Jim Dobbin MP

Party Conference Season is here again. The Liberal Democrat Conference is over as I write this article. My own Labour Conference began last Monday and I shall comment on it in my next article in a fortnight.

The Deputy Prime Minister spent most of his time apologising for broken promises.

For most people politics doesn’t dominate their lives. People have other things to worry about, but political decisions influence how we live our lives and we need to feel reassured by both our local and national politicians. That’s why it’s so wrong for political leaders to say one thing and then do the exact opposite.

The Lib Dems, who are now in fourth place behind UKip, have always been able to make promises they did not need to deliver. That all changed as soon as the coalition government was formed. Clegg then had to renege on the following commitments:

No plans to increase VAT- VAT increased to 20%;

More Police Officers- 28,000 police jobs to go;

Abolish tuition fees- tuition fees trebled;

Protect NHS spending- huge cuts in investment, doctors and nurses losing their jobs.

We are all in this together except for Tory millionaires and bankers. Saying sorry for that lot will never be forgotten.

Andrew Mitchells’ angry outburst was an example of a toff who is out of touch with ordinary people. Our millionaire government really believe they have the divine right to rule and don’t care who they hurt. On this occasion the police were in the firing line.

The report prepared by the Boroughs’ Safeguarding Children’s Board has had national coverage. It is a hard-hitting criticism of what went wrong and makes some very strong comment on what needs to change and so prevent this happening in future.

We are beginning to see other cases emerge in Rotherham and Derby. More will follow in other parts of the country and worldwide.

Lessons need to be learned, systems need to change, staff training has to improve and decisions must be taken much faster.

I attended a meeting in Manchester Town Hall with other Greater Manchester MP’s with the Local Enterprise Partnership. This is the agency that was set up to replace the Regional Development Agencies that were scrapped by the Coalition Government. The difference is the Development Agencies had money to invest whilst the Local Enterprise Partnership has no money. They are facilitators and have more of an advisory and support role. It was a useful meeting and local communities and businesses need to find out how these partnerships function.

The leader of Middleton Pop-stars, Anne Marshall, was awarded a Queens’ Award for her contribution to local young people. The award was presented by the Lord Lieutenant of Greater Manchester. Anne’s young, up and coming stars provided a short demonstration of their show-biz skills. It was terrific. Anne well deserves this award.

The Pride of Rochdale Borough Awards Ceremony was next in my diary. It was good to see the different groups and individuals recognised for their contribution to life in Rochdale. The winners were all volunteers who give of their time for their neighbours and communities. It was a great evening.

On Friday I visited four Macmillan Coffee morning events. Barclays Branch in Heywood and branches across the country were fundraising for this worthy cause. On to All Saints and Martyrs, Wood St, Middleton and a quick visit to Desmesne Community centre to Mal McColl, a big supporter of Break Through Breast Cancer. Lastly, I just managed to make the Bamford Chapel event as they were clearing-up. Macmillan Nurses do a terrific job caring for the terminally ill and deserve every support.

On Saturday I travelled down to London before setting off to Strasbourg and the Council of Europe to address a number of health issues.

Parliament returns on Monday 15 October after the Conservative Party conference. Should be fun!