‘EVENING OF INVINCIBILITY':
Last Sunday, I attended the ‘Evening of Invincibility,’ which has become an annual event to commemorate the Ukrainian people who have sacrificed their lives to fight for their country’s freedom and existence.
The evening began with a documentary which provided an insight into lives of the members of the dance group, ‘Stefania,’ which is comprised of Ukrainian refugees who have sought sanctity in Richmond Borough. The dancers retold their stories about growing up in Ukraine and how their lives have been transformed by the War. The destruction that has been caused to people’s lives by Russia’s invasion is depicted in graphic detail, and I would encourage you to watch this mini-documentary, which you can view by clicking here.
As the evening progressed, the focus shifted towards those who have lost their lives in the War, and the keynote speeches and performances underscored the tragedy that the conflict has brought to so many people’s lives.
The news recently has been dominated by President Trump’s concerning and confused comments regarding Putin’s War. His failure to condemn President Putin for Russia’s illegal invasion while inferring that Ukraine instigated the conflict has caused concerns to grow about the balance of international relations and the security of Europe.
During my speech at the ‘Evening of Invincibility,’ I had called on the Government to increase our defence budget and to make our commitment to continuing our support to Ukraine clear, and I am pleased that these steps are being taken. Support for Ukraine should transcend politics, and I was encouraged to see a rare moment of unity and support across almost all of the benches following the Prime Minister’s announcement of an increase to the UK’s defence spending.
I would like to thank the Ukrainian Social Club for hosting this event, and you can learn more about their organisation by clicking here.
HOME OFFICE QUESTIONS:
At the beginning of the week, I spoke in Home Office Questions to ask the Parliamentary Under-Secretary for Safeguarding and Violence Against Women and Girls, Jess Phillips MP, what actions the Government are taking to ensure that there are more refuge centres in London which are available to men.
My office has discussed this matter with representatives from Hestia, a charity which provides support to domestic abuse survivors, who stated that the lack of refuges which are open to men presents a problem for both male and female victims. This is because women fleeing violence are often informed that they cannot bring their teenage sons to refuge centres. This presents an obstacle to women seeking sanctity, as they are met with the impossible dilemma of either staying in a dangerous household or fleeing to a refuge without their son.
Receiving the necessary support and protections from an abuser should be made as easy as possible, and I was very pleased to hear that the Government has allocated additional investment towards the growth and maintenance of dispersed accommodation, which are self-contained centres that are open to both men and women. I have since followed up on my question in the Chamber by asking a Written Question to the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, to query what targets the Government has set regarding increasing the number of dispersed accommodation centres in the UK.
You can watch a clip of my question here.
PUBLIC ACCOUNTS COMMITTEE:
In my capacity as a member of the Public Accounts Committee (PAC), I attended an evidence session on Thursday regarding the Government’s relationship with digital technology suppliers. A report from the National Audit Office (NAO) found that the Government doesn’t know how much is spent overall on digital change programmes, or with major digital suppliers, and consequently, the Committee intended to investigate how the Government can be more strategic and improve the reliability of its digital activities.
During the session, I questioned Cat Little, the Permanent Secretary to the Cabinet Office, on how the new Procurement Act would make digital procurement easier. In response, Cat stated that the Act is providing the Government with more flexibility in digital procurement, which facilitates co-operation with small and medium enterprises (SMEs). Andrew Forzani, the UK Government’s Chief Commercial Officer, added that this flexibility allows for a test-and-learn approach, with greater transparency and earlier engagement with suppliers. You can watch a clip of my question here.
I also asked Claire Gibbs, the Interim Joint Chief Commercial Officer to the Cabinet Office, what actions are being taken to ensure that the current digital procurement playbook is made fit for purpose. Claire Gibbs stated that the playbook will be updated to reflect the more flexible nature of procurements, and that staff will be trained to apply the correct regulations to the playbook. David Knott, the Government’s Chief Technology Officer, further emphasised the need for clear guidance on joint digital and commercial leadership for procurement, and how to manage challenges that arise from this. You can watch a clip of my question here.
HEATHROW MEETING:
Yesterday, I met with Heathrow’s Director of Carbon Strategy to discuss the airport’s plans for a third runway. Heathrow aims to submit their proposal this Summer, but from the discussion that I held with their representative, it was evident that they planned to base much of their proposal upon their original plans.
This was concerning to hear, as Heathrow were unable to clarify how their new proposal will make adjustments to developments which have occurred since 2018. For example, they were unable to answer how they could model the projected noise disruption with their future flight paths potentially subject to change with airspace modernisation, and while the Director of Carbon Strategy stated that rapid advancements in Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) would address environmental concerns, he admitted that almost all of British Jet Fuel SAF is currently first generation, and he was unable to provide projections for how much of our flights would use second and third generation SAF by 2035 (the date that Heathrow projects that their runway will become operational).
This meeting only added to my severe concerns about Heathrow’s proposal, and I look forward to scrutinising their plan in detail when it is submitted.
TERMINALLY ILL ADULTS (END OF LIFE) BILL COMMITTEE:
On Tuesday and Wednesday this week, I participated in the line-by-line scrutiny stages of the Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill at its committee stage. This week, much of the debate has surrounded the concept of ‘intention’ as well as discussions surrounding the scope of the bill in regards to specific illnesses.
During the committee stage, the members discussed amendments which have been tabled to the Bill. I am continuing to work to ensure that the Bill has the strongest possible safeguards in place and I spoke in relation to an amendment which proposed a change of the prognosis time from 6 to 12 months. I spoke against this amendment to ensure the safeguards of the Bill remain in alignment with the original Bill which the House of Commons voted through in November.
ITV INTERVIEW ON ELECTRONIC TAGGING:
Last month, the Mayor’s Office for Police and Crime published their final evaluation report on the Ministry of Justice and the London Mayor’s pilot scheme of introducing electronic tagging more widely to monitor violent crime offenders’ compliance with their licensing conditions.
While the report referenced some marginal long-term benefits of tagging, the focus on tackling violent crime must be to restore our community policing levels and to ensure that preventative measures, such as funding for youth services, are prioritised.
I was asked by ITV News to speak about the conclusions reached by the report and also to comment upon a statistic which showed that black offenders are 87% more likely to be put on a tag than their white counterparts. This is indeed a concerning statistic, and I stated that this racial disparity must be investigated to ensure that people are not targeted for tagging based upon their skin colour.
You can watch my interview and the full ITV report on this matter by clicking here.
COMMUNITY NEWS:
KEW VILLAGE MARKET:
This Sunday 2nd March, Kew Village Market will be returning outside Kew Gardens Station between 10:00-14:00.
The fair will include food and craft stalls, as well as live music, with profits being donated to local charities, with over £100,00 having been raised since the market began in 2011.
You can find out more about this month’s market here.
BLUE BADGES DELAYS:
As some residents in Kingston Borough may have noticed, there has been a delay in processing Blue Badge renewals which has been caused by the unprecedented increase in demand for our Concessionary Travel Service.
To mitigate the impact of the delays, Kingston Council has applied temporary parking arrangements for expired blue badges. This includes extending the validity of recently expired badges until 31 March 2025 and I understand that the Council are actively contacting affected residents to make them aware of this extension.
If you have incorrectly received a Penalty Charge Notice due to the above reason, you can contact the Council and the fine will be cancelled.
KINGSTON REVIVE-ALL REPAIR CAFE:
Next week, the Save The World Club will be running an electrical repair café to mark London’s Repair Week. The event runs between 15:00- 18:00 at 18 Southsea Road, KT1 2EH, where you can meet the team and see the workshop in action.
If you have any items in need of repair, you can contact the team at revive-all@savetheworldclub.org before the event, and you can book an appointment by clicking here.
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