October 2009 report

Parliamentary Business

Constitutional Reform and Governance Bill

The Constitutional Reform and Governance Bill was debated in the House during its second reading (a debate on the main principles) on 20 October before progressing to committee stage.

The bill includes some of the provisions of the Governance of Britain green paper as well as new additions.

Part one of the bill introduces a statutory basis for the management of the civil service and establishes a civil service commission. It specifies criteria for the appointment of special advisers and civil servants and introduces a code of conduct for special advisers (who are appointed to act as link between the Secretary of State and civil servants).

Part two addresses treaty ratification. A treaty is an international law that is binding on states that ratify it and will have implications for domestic law or policy. Currently Parliament has no formal role in scrutiny of treaties and cannot directly block ratification although informally parliamentary scrutiny does take place. The bill puts this scrutiny on a statutory footing and if the House of Commons agrees that a treaty should not be ratified, it will be illegal for the Government to do so.

Part three of the bill ends by-elections for hereditary peers. Currently if a sitting peer dies, a by-election is held with the sitting hereditary peers in the Lords voting on a replacement. The bill removes this practice meaning hereditary peers will not be replaced. It also contains provisions for the removal of members of the House of Lords for criminal convictions or insolvency and provisions for a peer to resign and renounce their peerage.

Other items include removing limits to protests around Parliament and introducing one-year time limits on human rights cases under the devolution acts.

Marine and Costal Access Bill

The final stages of the Marine and Costal Access Bill were debated in the Commons at the end of October.

The bill addresses the protection of marine environments, public access to coastal areas and marine industries.

The bill legislates for the creation of a long distance public route around the coast of England. It also introduces marine conservation zones to protect rare and valued marine species and habitats. It will create a new UK-wide system for marine planning and a streamlined system for licensing marine developments this will enable the Government to maximise opportunities to harness wind and wave power.

The bill creates a new marine management organisation to have oversight of planning, licensing, conservation and enforcement; simplifying and joining together current systems.

Other matters

Backing Young Britain

During September, the Prime Minister announced a number of measures to increase support for unemployed young people.

Backing Young Britain aims to ensure that young people are not neglected during the current economic situation and to make sure that jobs and training opportunities are available to them.

The £1bn future jobs fund will create 100,000 new jobs targeted at young people. 18-24 year olds are now offered extra support from day one of signing on for Jobseeker's Allowance including mentoring, work experience placements and, after six months, internships. They will also be able to access jobs from the future jobs fund after claiming Jobseeker's Allowance for 10 months instead of a year from April 2010. The future jobs fund will also fund job opportunities for jobseekers in the UK's most disadvantaged areas.

In addition 45,000 new training opportunities in industry have been created with financial incentives for employers who take on a trainee. Young people will also be able to access sector-specific pre-employment training in key industries.

There is also further investment to provide learning opportunities for 16-18 year olds, guaranteeing a place at school, college or in an apprenticeship or training for this year and next.

The Government has also created Local Employment Partnerships to make sure job opportunities locally are available to those seeking work.

10:10 Campaign

I have joined the campaign to cut my carbon emissions by 10% in 2010.

I have received a huge number of e-mails on the campaign and it has been interesting reading about the range of different ways in which people are reducing their carbon emissions.

The campaign has amassed a huge following including all Cabinet ministers. The Government introduced carbon budgets for each of its departments following the Climate Change Act 2008 (which set binding emissions reduction targets in legislation and a system of carbon budgets across the economy) and is on track to reduce emissions across the Government's estate by 12.5 per cent by 2010-11.

I joined Secretary of State, Ed Miliband in Shoreditch at the end of October at one of a series of rallies in the countdown to Copenhagen. It is crucial to mobilise support throughout the UK in advance of the Copenhagen talks in December and I am supportive of Ed Miliband's mission to engage UK businesses and media in pushing for an ambitious international deal.

Cycle to work guarantee

More than 70 public and private sector employers have signed up to measures to help staff cycle to work.

The cycle to work guarantee commits employers to providing safe bike storage, changing facilities and access to the Government's tax break scheme (for bikes and cycling equipment).

For more information visit www.cycletoworkguarantee.org.uk

As well as promoting cycling to work, we need to seriously look at the safety of cyclists in London. I have been shocked by the e-mails I have received recently about incidents involving lorries on London streets.

I am meeting with Transport Secretary, Lord Adonis on 11 November and will be raising cycling safety issues with him. Please e-mail me at hilllierm@parliament.uk if you have specific issues you would like to highlight.

Helpline for workers

A helpline has been set up for workers and employers to access information about workplace rights and report abuses of those rights.

The new pay and work rights helpline 0800 917 2368 brings together all current helplines to one single contact point for advice on minimum wage, working time and gangmaster licensing.

Help for Homeowners

Housing Minister, John Healey has recently launched the 'It's Your Home' campaign to help struggling homeowners avoid repossession.

This national campaign is part of a Government scheme which has so far enabled over 300,000 people to receive advice and/or financial help since April 2008. The scheme supports homeowners through face-to-face debt advice, direct help with mortgage interest payments and ensuring lenders treat homeowners fairly and prove they have exhausted every option before seeking repossession.

For more information on Government assistance schemes go to www.direct.gov.uk/mortgagehelp call the National Debtline for impartial advice on 0808 808 4000.

Affordable homes

Hackney is to receive extra funds to provide affordable housing.

£250 million is being invested nationally to provide more affordable homes with £2.146 million going to fund homes in Hackney. Four in every five homes built will be low-cost rent and the rest for first-time buyers.

Support for victims

Home Secretary Alan Johnson has announced a number of measures to tackle anti-social behaviour and support its victims.

The measures include extra support for victims of anti-social behaviour who take a stand in the magistrates courts against offenders and funding to set up a network of victim and witness champions in priority areas across the country. Witness champions will support victims through the court proceedings, accompany them when they give evidence and provide follow up assistance afterwards.

Sixty-two areas around the country, including Hackney, will be given extra support including expert advice to help councils, police and social landlords improve the way anti-social behaviour is dealt with.

Child Trust Fund payments

From September this year, the Government has been making the first Child Trust Fund payments to 7 year olds as announced in the 2006 Budget.

The Government introduced the payments in April 2005 for newborns with a £250 voucher sent to parents automatically once they have claimed child benefit. The payments were backdated to 1 September 2002 and now those children reaching the age of 7 will receive a second £250 payment.

Children from lower income families receive an additional £250 and the Government also provides an extra £100 per year for every child who spends the year in care.

Over 4.4 million children have a Child Trust Fund account.

Consumer rights - credit cards

The Government is seeking to change the laws governing credit cards to ensure consumers are treated fairly.

The bank practices being considered for action are; the practice of increasing credit limits without prior consent; sending unsolicited credit card cheques and paying the cheapest debt off first (i.e not cash debts with a larger APR). The Government is also looking at putting restrictions on interest rates being increased on existing debts.

The consultation on these issues is open until 19 January 2010 and is available at www.bis.gov.uk/creditconsultation

Hackney issues

Wind turbine for Hackney Marshes

Hackney Council has launched a consultation for residents on proposals to site a wind turbine on Hackney Marshes.

The proposal is part of Olympic Delivery Authority plans for generating renewable energy on the Olympic park site and the turbine would be located on the East Marsh (part of the Olympic site).

If it goes ahead, Hackney would produce more green energy than any other London borough - enough to power all street lamps at night and council buildings during the day.

The Council are keen to balance the potential benefits with loss of space on the marshes and want to have a full debate on the proposals.

To have your say visit www.hackney.gov.uk/windturbine

Global Hackney

The Department for International Development runs a number of schemes helping to develop partnerships with communities in other countries.

The DFID Global Schools Partnership programme provides funding and training for UK schools to develop partnerships with schools in Africa, Asia, Latin America or the Caribbean. A number of funding options are available. For more details visit www.dfid.gov.uk/discoveryzone

Grants are also being made available from 2010 to support links between community groups in the UK and developing counties. More information available at www.dfid.gov.uk .

DFID are also jointly supporting a scheme with the Department for Health aimed at strengthening partnerships between UK and developing country health institutions to develop health systems. For more details visit www.britishcouncil.org/learning-healthlinks .

For 18-25 years olds there are 500 fully funded volunteering opportunities available for early 2010 run by Christian Aid and BUNAC. For more information go to www.myplatform2.com

For information on all the projects you can get involved with visit www.dfid.gov.uk/getinvolved

Green Communities Network

The Energy Saving Trust has set up a green communities programme which supports green community projects with training, consultancy and monthly news.

The programme is free and you can sign up at www.energysavingtrust.org.uk/community or call 0844 848 0077 if you have any questions.

Hackney updates

Hackney Council have introduced an electronic update service for residents who want to find out about decisions made in their ward.

The service provides e-mail notification of any council documents relating to decisions made in your ward area.

To sign up for the updates, visit Hackney Council website and register. You can then select which wards or committees you are interested in.

East London Line replacement bus

The East London Line replacement bus service (ELW) which travels through Shoreditch daily, is currently having its service reviewed.

Due to a reduction in passengers using the ELW service, Transport for London are looking to reduce the frequency of the service from every 10 minutes to every 15 minutes on weekdays. It is expected that the service will resume as normal on evenings and weekends. There are no plans to cancel the service altogether.