Travel around the constituency and you will see closed down shops and empty office space. You will travel on what can only be described as terrible roads and pavements, despite the many pot holes that have been filled recently.
Talk to business owners and they will tell you how hard they are working, but are getting little if any support from their banks. Red tape and bureacracy has gone too far and they are inundated with restrictions and papers to fill out that do nothing to help their business grow.
You'll be concenred about the increase in crime in the area, particularly burglary. You may wonder what the future will be for the area and for your children.
It's time for change in Leicester East.
Go round the constituency and you will also spot golden nuggets of community work going on that transform the lives of the people living there. In Thurncourt, you will find an excellent lunch club in Thurnby Lodge Community Centre on Tuesdays; in St Matthews you will find a Somali Community Centre founded and developed by the local community, offering skills based learning, sport for children and a Job Club. In Belgrave, Harrison Rd Sikh Temple was funded entirely by the local community and recently rebuilt, offering worship and community facilities to the area.
This is the kind of thing we need so much more of in Leicester East. We need to help people to form groups to make the best of their community. To work together, to take control and to take pride in what they achieve.
It's time for Big Society and small government.
It's time for change in Leicester East.
Tuesday, 20 April 2010
Monday, 12 April 2010
Time for Change in Leicester East
We had a great time canvassing on Belgrave Rd on Saturday with Dominic Grieve, Shadow Secretary of State for Justice. Lots of support for the Conservatives. It really is Time for Change in Leicester East.
Sunday, 21 March 2010
Wednesday, 17 March 2010
Faith Question Time
Thank you to all the people who attended the Faith Question Time last Sunday at Leicester Cathedral. Questions ranged from asylum claims to the NHS and MP expenses.
The next hustings event I am to attend is at Belgrave Neighbourhood Centre on Sunday 21 March at 4.30pm where candidates from all parties and I believe all Leicester city constituencies are to attend.
Tuesday, 16 February 2010
Litter Pick by St Philips Church Evington, Come Along
Litter pick helps clean-up community
A COMMUNITY will join forces in a litter pick to help clean up the streets in an area of Leicester.
Volunteers from across Evington will be getting stuck in as part of the national Big Tidy Up campaign, which is being organised by the Leicester Inter-Faith Youth Hub and Leicester City Council street wardens.
The litter pick takes place on Saturday, February 20, from 10am to 12.30pm, setting off from St Philips Church in Evington Lane, and visiting side-roads up to St Stephens Road.
As well as removing litter, participants will be giving out information packs to local residents, with details of recycling and waste collection services available.
Those taking part include local youngsters, residents, faith leaders, police and local councillors, and a ‘thank you’ lunch for all participants will be served at 1pm.
There will also be fundraising for anti-malaria charity Malaria No More, for items such as bed nets to protect against mosquitoes.
To book a place on the litter pick, contact Raheema Caratella at the St Philips Centre on 0116 273 3459 or 07742 040929.
Wednesday, 27 January 2010
Inequality Gap Increases Under Labour
Responding to a damning report from the National Equality Panel, which shows that inequality under Labour has risen to its highest level since World War II, Shadow Minister for Women and Equalities, Theresa May said:
“It is truly shocking that after 13 years of a Labour Government, inequality has grown to the highest levels seen since the Second World War.
“It is unbelievable that Labour thinks it can claim to be the party of aspiration when its failure to tackle the causes of poverty have let down so many lives.
“We cannot go on like this. We need a change from Labour’s failed one-dimensional approach to tackling poverty and inequality. Conservatives will tackle the causes of poverty and inequality not just the symptoms through radical policies to address educational failure, family breakdown and worklessness.”
On Wednesday 27th January 2010 The National Equality Panel published 'An Anatomy of Economic Inquality in the UK'. The report revealed:
Income inequality and povertyThe highest level of inequality since World War Two. 'Increasing inequality after 2004-05 meant that by 2007-08 it had reached its highest level in the years covered. We do not have figures before 1961 on this besis, but comparison with measures based on tax records suggests that this is the highest levels of income inequality since soon after the Second World War (Main report p39).
Income Inequality Amongst the Highest of OECD Countries. Income inequality is higher in the UK than most OECD countries including New Zealand, Ireland, Japan, Spain, Canada, Germany, France, the Netherlands and the OECD average. The UK is placed 7th in the OECD for income inequality only behind Mexico, Turkey, Portugal the United States, Poland and Italy (Main report p53).
Poverty Rates Amongst the Highest in Europe. In 2006 the UK has an overall poverty rate of 19 per cent, compared to an average of 16 per cent across the 15 longest standing EU members. Only Italy, Spain and Greece had higher overall poverty rates (Main report p54).
Earnings grew, but only for company bosses. 'For all employees, real earnings were roughly static between 2003 and 2008 (at about 106 per cent of 1999 levels). But between 1999 and 2007 the real earnings of the CEOs of the top 100 companies more than doubled (reaching £2.4 million a year)' (Main report p42).
Social background
Differences in wealth between occupational social classes are 'very large indeed'. Average incomes for men in higher managerial or professional households is £578 per week, more than double that of men from routine occupation households of £268 per week. Differences in the total wealth of households were even larger. Median net wealth for households in routine occupations is £74,000, but for those in professional and managerial households, it is more than £450,000 (Main Report p210).
Education
Inequalities impact on child’s development. Children entering primary school in 2005-6 whose mothers had degrees were assessed [as] 6 months ahead of those who had no qualifications above Grade D at GCSE. In addition, every extra £100 per month in income when children were small was associated with a difference equivalent to a month’s development. (Summary p22). There was a gap equivalent to a year’s development between those with no parent in paid work and those with two parents working and eight months between those whose parents were in poverty and those who were not (Main Report p336).
Poor Children Less Likely to Go to University Despite Achieving Good results. Young people with GCSE results above the national median who have been on Free School Meals are less likely to go on to higher education than others with the same results. (Summary p25)
Young people
The Position of Young People Has Declined Under Labour. The position of young people (aged under 25) in the labour market and in equivalent net income has declined both over the longer-term and in the last decade, for some because of longer periods in education, but not for others (Summary p14).
Social mobility
Social Mobility Low by International Standards. Rates of intergenerational mobility in terms of incomes are low in international terms, and in terms of occupation are below the international average for men and at the bottom of the range for women (Summary p25). It matters more in Britain who your parents are than in many other countries (Main report p330).
Social Mobility Stalled Under Labour. There is no evidence that rates of relative occupational mobility have changed at all since the early 1970s (Main report p324).
Gender pay gapPay Gap Remains Stubbornly Large. Women are paid 21% less than men in terms of median hourly pay for all employees and 13% less for those working full-time. (Summary p11).
Male graduates overtake female graduates. Within four years of graduation, nearly twice as many men have earnings over £30,000 as women (Main report p388).
Ethnic minorities
Ethnic Minorities Still Far Less Likely to be in Employment. Nearly all minority ethnic groups are less likely to be in paid employment than White British men and women. 44% of Pakistani and 49% of Bangladeshi women are economically inactive compared to 20% or fewer of other groups. (p16)
DisabilityDisabled people twice as likely to have no or low qualifications. Nearly half of those reporting both ‘work-limiting’ and are classified as disabled in terms of the Disability Discrimination Act (DDA) have no or only low qualifications, twice the proportion of those who are not disabled. Their paid employment rates are less than half of those of people who are not disabled. (p19)
Inequalities in income have increased for disabled people. According to official definitions, working age adults who are ‘DDA-disabled’ have a medium equivalent net income that is 30% lower than that for other working age adults. This is a considerable fall relative to the national median since the late 1990s. (p20)
Conservative ApproachThe Report by the National Equality Panel highlighted key areas of policy that could make a real difference to Labour’s failed record on tackling inequality. The Conservative Party has already introduced a range of policy measures that encompass many of the NEP’s suggestions including early intervention, improving educational attainments of poorer children and new measures to tackle youth unemployment and the persistent gender pay gap.
Conservatives will tackle the root causes of poverty and equality, not just the symptoms. Our approach will take into account the importance of families, communities and incentives to work. We will take effective action by:
Supporting families – We will support families and end the couple penalty in the tax credits system.
Welfare reform – Work is the best route out of poverty. Under Conservative’s plans to Get Britain Working no one will be left behind in a life of benefit dependency. We will replace Labour’s complicated and bureaucratic employment programmes with The Work Programme, a single progamme of back to work support for everyone on out-of-work benefits, including the 2.6 million people on Incapacity Benefits currently ignored by Labour. We will also create 400,000 new apprenticeships and training opportunities over two years to tackle youth unemployment and prevent a generation being written off by the recession.
School reform - Our proposals to reform education include weighting school funding towards children from the poorest backgrounds through a pupil premium and ensuring that extra funds follow those pupils to the school that educates them.
A rehabilitation revolution - We will fundamentally reform the prison service to end the devastating cycle of re-offending, which at present destroys lives, splits up families, and weakens communities. We will do this in three ways: by making the people who run prisons accountable for reducing their inmates re-offending; by bringing the prison and probation services together; and by ensuring that the market in offender management and rehabilitation services is fully opened up.
Health visitors - A Conservative Government will provide a universal health visiting service to all parents. We will radically increase the number of health visitors so that every family can count on the proper, professional support they need, with money set aside for proper training and extra help for families in the most deprived areas.
Sure Start - we will take Sure Start back to its original purpose of early intervention, increase its focus on the neediest families and better involve organisations with a track record in supporting families.
“It is truly shocking that after 13 years of a Labour Government, inequality has grown to the highest levels seen since the Second World War.
“It is unbelievable that Labour thinks it can claim to be the party of aspiration when its failure to tackle the causes of poverty have let down so many lives.
“We cannot go on like this. We need a change from Labour’s failed one-dimensional approach to tackling poverty and inequality. Conservatives will tackle the causes of poverty and inequality not just the symptoms through radical policies to address educational failure, family breakdown and worklessness.”
On Wednesday 27th January 2010 The National Equality Panel published 'An Anatomy of Economic Inquality in the UK'. The report revealed:
Income inequality and povertyThe highest level of inequality since World War Two. 'Increasing inequality after 2004-05 meant that by 2007-08 it had reached its highest level in the years covered. We do not have figures before 1961 on this besis, but comparison with measures based on tax records suggests that this is the highest levels of income inequality since soon after the Second World War (Main report p39).
Income Inequality Amongst the Highest of OECD Countries. Income inequality is higher in the UK than most OECD countries including New Zealand, Ireland, Japan, Spain, Canada, Germany, France, the Netherlands and the OECD average. The UK is placed 7th in the OECD for income inequality only behind Mexico, Turkey, Portugal the United States, Poland and Italy (Main report p53).
Poverty Rates Amongst the Highest in Europe. In 2006 the UK has an overall poverty rate of 19 per cent, compared to an average of 16 per cent across the 15 longest standing EU members. Only Italy, Spain and Greece had higher overall poverty rates (Main report p54).
Earnings grew, but only for company bosses. 'For all employees, real earnings were roughly static between 2003 and 2008 (at about 106 per cent of 1999 levels). But between 1999 and 2007 the real earnings of the CEOs of the top 100 companies more than doubled (reaching £2.4 million a year)' (Main report p42).
Social background
Differences in wealth between occupational social classes are 'very large indeed'. Average incomes for men in higher managerial or professional households is £578 per week, more than double that of men from routine occupation households of £268 per week. Differences in the total wealth of households were even larger. Median net wealth for households in routine occupations is £74,000, but for those in professional and managerial households, it is more than £450,000 (Main Report p210).
Education
Inequalities impact on child’s development. Children entering primary school in 2005-6 whose mothers had degrees were assessed [as] 6 months ahead of those who had no qualifications above Grade D at GCSE. In addition, every extra £100 per month in income when children were small was associated with a difference equivalent to a month’s development. (Summary p22). There was a gap equivalent to a year’s development between those with no parent in paid work and those with two parents working and eight months between those whose parents were in poverty and those who were not (Main Report p336).
Poor Children Less Likely to Go to University Despite Achieving Good results. Young people with GCSE results above the national median who have been on Free School Meals are less likely to go on to higher education than others with the same results. (Summary p25)
Young people
The Position of Young People Has Declined Under Labour. The position of young people (aged under 25) in the labour market and in equivalent net income has declined both over the longer-term and in the last decade, for some because of longer periods in education, but not for others (Summary p14).
Social mobility
Social Mobility Low by International Standards. Rates of intergenerational mobility in terms of incomes are low in international terms, and in terms of occupation are below the international average for men and at the bottom of the range for women (Summary p25). It matters more in Britain who your parents are than in many other countries (Main report p330).
Social Mobility Stalled Under Labour. There is no evidence that rates of relative occupational mobility have changed at all since the early 1970s (Main report p324).
Gender pay gapPay Gap Remains Stubbornly Large. Women are paid 21% less than men in terms of median hourly pay for all employees and 13% less for those working full-time. (Summary p11).
Male graduates overtake female graduates. Within four years of graduation, nearly twice as many men have earnings over £30,000 as women (Main report p388).
Ethnic minorities
Ethnic Minorities Still Far Less Likely to be in Employment. Nearly all minority ethnic groups are less likely to be in paid employment than White British men and women. 44% of Pakistani and 49% of Bangladeshi women are economically inactive compared to 20% or fewer of other groups. (p16)
DisabilityDisabled people twice as likely to have no or low qualifications. Nearly half of those reporting both ‘work-limiting’ and are classified as disabled in terms of the Disability Discrimination Act (DDA) have no or only low qualifications, twice the proportion of those who are not disabled. Their paid employment rates are less than half of those of people who are not disabled. (p19)
Inequalities in income have increased for disabled people. According to official definitions, working age adults who are ‘DDA-disabled’ have a medium equivalent net income that is 30% lower than that for other working age adults. This is a considerable fall relative to the national median since the late 1990s. (p20)
Conservative ApproachThe Report by the National Equality Panel highlighted key areas of policy that could make a real difference to Labour’s failed record on tackling inequality. The Conservative Party has already introduced a range of policy measures that encompass many of the NEP’s suggestions including early intervention, improving educational attainments of poorer children and new measures to tackle youth unemployment and the persistent gender pay gap.
Conservatives will tackle the root causes of poverty and equality, not just the symptoms. Our approach will take into account the importance of families, communities and incentives to work. We will take effective action by:
Supporting families – We will support families and end the couple penalty in the tax credits system.
Welfare reform – Work is the best route out of poverty. Under Conservative’s plans to Get Britain Working no one will be left behind in a life of benefit dependency. We will replace Labour’s complicated and bureaucratic employment programmes with The Work Programme, a single progamme of back to work support for everyone on out-of-work benefits, including the 2.6 million people on Incapacity Benefits currently ignored by Labour. We will also create 400,000 new apprenticeships and training opportunities over two years to tackle youth unemployment and prevent a generation being written off by the recession.
School reform - Our proposals to reform education include weighting school funding towards children from the poorest backgrounds through a pupil premium and ensuring that extra funds follow those pupils to the school that educates them.
A rehabilitation revolution - We will fundamentally reform the prison service to end the devastating cycle of re-offending, which at present destroys lives, splits up families, and weakens communities. We will do this in three ways: by making the people who run prisons accountable for reducing their inmates re-offending; by bringing the prison and probation services together; and by ensuring that the market in offender management and rehabilitation services is fully opened up.
Health visitors - A Conservative Government will provide a universal health visiting service to all parents. We will radically increase the number of health visitors so that every family can count on the proper, professional support they need, with money set aside for proper training and extra help for families in the most deprived areas.
Sure Start - we will take Sure Start back to its original purpose of early intervention, increase its focus on the neediest families and better involve organisations with a track record in supporting families.
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