MPFree
Michael Foster’s Parliamentary
Bulletin
March 2009
I
hope everyone survived this past winter in one piece, and if you
are anything like me you are welcoming Spring with open arms! It is
great to finally get to see the bright blue sky for more than a few
intermittent moments. I hope you are all enjoying the weather as it
warms up- not quite bathing suit weather but I saw a few flip-flops
this weekend!
Here
is the news from this past month:
£4.2
million grant for My Place
By now you will have heard the
fantastic news that the Hastings Trust has been awarded £4.2million
to transform the iconic St Mary in the Castle into a youth
facility.
The
money, awarded through the Government's Myplace scheme will allow
the new centre to provide a wealth of facilities including a live
performance area, music studio and workshop, digital media and
enterprise space. Advice will also be offered on health issues,
employment and training.
What really impressed me about this whole scheme is that young
people have not only been involved, but have in fact defined the
whole process. It was local youngsters, the Hastings Youth Council,
with some help from the Hastings Trust and their Chief Exec Mel
Bonney-Kane who put together the bid and decided what it was they
wanted for themselves. And my word they did a good job. This was a
multimillion pound bid and they really put together an exceptional
proposal. I was proud to present the excellence of the scheme to
Minister Bev Hughes.
So often the media
caricature our youth as hoodies and thugs when in reality they are
our entire future. Given the power to decide for themselves and
make their voices heard our young people are capable of incredible
things. That's exactly what this scheme is about – giving them the
power and the money to make choices for themselves. They have more
than stepped up to the plate.
St Mary in the Castle is one of the most historic buildings in town
but I can think of no better use for it than preparing our youth
for the future.
Rye Post
Office
During March I had the opportunity
to debate with Post Office Minister Pat McFadden the delivery of
Post Post Office Services in Rye.
The whole change saga has been a
shambles. Post Office management have offered us in Rye a
masterclass in how to do things wrong. In spite of a £1.7billion
subsidy from government they have closed the back up facility on
Tilling Green and allowed the central office to descend into farce.
Jempsons/Budgens have now agreed to take on an upgraded Post Office
but that does not excuse the failings of Post Office management. I
told the Minister that they had to learn from their mistakes and
ensure that Rye never suffered such lapses in service
again.
You can see the full debate online
by clicking
HERE
Cash
for Mums to be
The
new ‘Health in Pregnancy Grant’ will give all mums-to-be who are at
least 25 weeks pregnant on the 1st of April a one time
payment of £190. These payments will go directly into their bank or
building society accounts starting in April 2009.
All you need to do is get a claim
form from your midwife or doctor.
I
think this is a great program, having a baby is an exciting time
and there is loads of planning to be done. I am delighted we are
offering this real help to mums-to-be. The grant won’t affect any
other benefits or your tax credits and every mum will get the same
amount.
If
you are not 25 weeks pregnant yet you can sign up to a reminder
service. To get a free text or email reminder sign up at
www.campaigns.direct.gov.uk/money4mum2be/alerts.jsp
Hastings Sierra
Leone Friendship Link
Last
week Parliament held a special debate on Africa and I used the
occasion to pay tribute to the work of local charity the Hastings
Sierra Leone Friendship Link. You can see my full speech online by
clicking
HERE.
Sierra Leone suffered a devastating Civil War in the 1990s
and the UK has been helping to rebuild ever since. The Government
encouraged British towns to support their namesakes in Sierra Leone
and Hastings UK has been helping Hastings Sierra Leone since 2001/2
culminating in the 2007 twinning of the two towns. The Hastings
Sierra Leone Friendship Link was set up to channel aid to the
African town.
The
UK is now the second largest giver of aid in the world. That is a
great achievement but I believe the most effective way to give aid
is by making direct links with communities in the developing
world.
The
Hastings Sierra Leone Friendship Link has done a fantastic job
helping with reconstruction. Their first project alone saw 13
bridges rebuilt in the town under the direction of local engineer
Derek Tomblin. A community resource centre is now under
construction and cultural exchange is ongoing as our local primary
schools twin with their Sierra Leonean counterparts. Christchurch
Primary School has
already raised enough money for staff and pupils at Kankaylay
Islamic School to buy a piece of ground on which to start building
new premises.
I have
been hugely impressed by the hard work of individuals such as
Derek, John Geater, Robin Grey, Roger Mitchell and
Councillor Jeremy
Birch whose hard work has driven this project forward. I wish them
great success in the future.
University attendance up
26%
This month new figures were
released that revealed that the number of young people now going on
to university from Hastings and Rye has increased 26% since
1997.
Since Labour came to office we have
worked hard to expand training opportunities across the board for
young people, including the chance to get a degree. These figures
show more of those who want to can benefit from a university
education.
A range of measures have been introduced since 1997 to widen
participation in higher education. Overall funding has been
increased by 23% and over two thirds of students now get a full or
partial grant of up to £2,835.
Breaks for
Carers
The
National Carers Strategy has pledged £150 million in new funding
for breaks for carers. This is a significant amount of money that I
want to ensure is used for the intended purpose.
The
money will go straight to local NHS Trusts. However, when it is
added to their budgets, starting in April 2009, it isn’t ring
fenced meaning there is no guarantee the money will go to providing
short breaks for carers to rejuvenate and rest. Carers deserve our
thanks and gratitude and I shall be meeting with the local NHS
Trust Chief Executive to urge him to make sure all this money is
spent as intended.
Securing financial independence for
victims of domestic violence
Home
Secretary Jacqui Smith has announced a new £3.5 million funding
boost for domestic violence charities and services. The goal is to
fast track victims of domestic violence for benefits, making it
financially easier for them to leave the homes of their
abuser.
By
making financial independence easier I hope fewer victims will feel
trapped by a lack of money.
International Women’s
Day
This
month I marked International Women’s Day was marked on the
8th of March. International Women’s Day has been a
global day of recognition and celebration since 1908 when women
marched in New York to demand the vote.
We
have come a long way since then but there is still further to go.
Women still receive less pay then men for similar jobs. That gap
has narrowed significantly in the last 11 years but we must
continue to protect women from discrimination. I signed a
parliamentary motion (click
HERE
to see it) calling for
an eradication of the pay gap between the sexes and have committed
myself to fighting for this cause.
Walking on hot
coals
On
April 22nd I have volunteered to ‘walk on fire’ to raise
funds for St. Michael’s Hospice. Do come and see me hauled over the
coals and to donate to this extremely worth cause. To find out more
please visit http://www.justgiving.com/michaelfoster
. If you would like to volunteer or walk on fire with me to raise
money then call the hospice at 01424
201838.
There you have it! The ins and outs
of my March. Remember you can always keep up with my activities by
visiting www.michaelfoster.org.uk
or by emailing me
at MP@1066.net
or calling 01424
460070
Best wishes,
Michael Foster DL
MP
