Letter from Parliament - Jim Dobbin

Jim Dobbin MP

As the Prime Minister was attending the NATO Summit in Bucharest , Harriet Harman took Question Time this week for the first time and triumphed over William Hague easily. Vincent Cable deputising for Nick Clegg surprisingly failed to research his question properly and was ruled out of order by the Speaker. He had asked a question including the Queen and that is not allowed. Harriet came through her baptism by fire with flying colours.

Before we broke up on Wednesday evening for the Easter recess, I was briefed on the Government’s allocation of £2 million for children’s facilities and an adventure playground for the borough. This is a clear demonstration of the Government’s determination to invest in children and young people. I hope Rochdale Council invests it wisely and listens to the views of the local community, something they have not been doing in recent months.

When I am out and about in the constituency talking to people and listening to their concerns, I make sure I tell people what is going on in Westminster as it affects all our lives. You might not believe it when you read some of the coverage that Parliament gets in the media but very real work goes on day in day out. In April, new measures came into force on real issues like policing and cracking down on loan sharks. We know that people want more say about their community and a police force that is visible, responsive and deals with local problems. That’s why for this month you will have a dedicated neighbourhood police team in your area. Bobbies on the beat in our streets make us feel safer and neighbourhood police teams will provide local policing based around your priorities.

The police teams should be easy to contact because local police forces will publish their details such as names and phone numbers so they can easily hear from local people and get to know their neighbourhoods. The aim is to create anew style of policing to address local priorities and improve public confidence. I just ask you to be patient and let the new scheme settle in.

The Corporate Manslaughter and Corporate Homicide Bill comes into effect from April and will make it easier to prosecute companies when grave failures in the management of Health and Safety lead to death. The Act sends out a powerful message to companies and organisations that they will be made to face up to their responsibilities for the health and safety of their employees.

From April anyone who is disabled or over the age of 60 will be entitled to free off peak bus travel anywhere in the country so please sign up for free bus travel. This means that passholders in my constituency will be able to visit relatives or go on holiday to other parts of the country. Crooks that prey on the vulnerable, particularly pensioners for financial gain need sorting out. I’ve heard some real horror stories about loan sharks so I am pleased that new measures that I supported will come into force through the consumer Credit Act. It will see a crackdown on rogue lenders and debt collectors and will provide protection for consumers.

I hosted a reception in Parliament for my old professional body the Institute of Biomedical Scientists where I presented life achievement awards to retired members. It was good to meet some of my former colleagues in a pleasant informal atmosphere.

My second Select Committee for Communities and Local Government visited Barking and Dagenham to take evidence on immigration and social cohesion. We met three different groups, one representing migrants, one representing the local indigenous population and another local partnership of police, council, Primary Care Trust and voluntary sector. Our findings will be presented in a few months and will be sent to the Communities and Local Government Department.

The Opposition parties did not push the Terrorism Bill to a vote but may do so at report stage. Two young constituents of mine Nick Thornsby and his friend who is studying medicine at Newcastle University visited me in the Commons last week. I love it when young people take an interest in the political system.

I travelled to Sheffield on Friday evening to speak at a rally on the Embryology Bill and on Saturday we enjoyed a happy evening at the Mayor’s Ball in the Town Hall. Sunday we attended the 35th anniversary of Heywood Lions, hosted by President David Rothwell, where we met up again with the Mayor and Mayoress Cllr Peter Evans and Mrs Helen Evans, great ambassadors for the borough. The Lions movement founded in USA in 1917 does a great deal of fundraising for local charities and deserves our support.