Concerns Raised over Proposals for Legal Aid 14 December 2006
Posted by karenbuckmp in National News.comments closed
Karen Buck succeeded in securing a debate in Parliament yesterday on the future of Legal Aid funding in London and across the country. Many London MPs joined Karen in expressing their concerns over the proposals that arose from the Carter Review of Legal Aid. Karen used the opportunity to congratulate the hard work of many local advice organisations and solicitors, “I have been blessed with a number of excellent advice services in the private and not-for-profit sectors, and I put on record my appreciation of the work that they do.”
She continued by talking about the knock-on effect on MPs and their offices, ”However, even at present strength, my office is deluged with work: there were 3,000 cases last year. My office has dealt with more than 1,000 housing complaints, with homelessness, disrepair, debt and immigration, but still, a vast amount of need goes unmet.
If there is a reduction in the provision of advice services in my area, my office will not be able to cope, and those who lose out will be the poorest—the most disadvantaged of my constituents. This is an issue of national concern, but not for the first time, I make a particular plea for the interests of London.”
Karen Buck calls for Action on Affordable Housing 8 December 2006
Posted by karenbuckmp in Local News, National News.comments closed
Karen Buck MP lobbied the Chancellor, Gordon Brown with an urgent message to build more social rented homes in Westminster & Kensington, at a Parliamentary event on Monday 4 December. She then spoke in a Parliamentary debate yesterday (7th December) about Affordable Housing.
As part of a campaign by housing charity Shelter, Karen Buck MP posted a red rubber brick to the Chancellor as a symbol of her support for the charity’s call to build more social rented homes for families in the greatest housing need. In
London alone there are currently 3,000 homeless households trapped in temporary accommodation, robbing those children of their health, education and a fair chance in life.
Shelter aims to send a total of 20,000 bricks to Gordon Brown to persuade him to fund an extra 20,000 social homes each year when he sets out his three-year spending plans next summer. Speaking yesterday in the Commons Karen Buck MP described the situation for the hundreds of families that are moved out of the area into temporary accommodation, “I am concerned about recent evidence of the difficulty of obtaining temporary accommodation to meet the needs of homeless families in my borough. Placements in such accommodation are often responsible for the community tensions… (more…)
Peace in Middle East & Cluster Munitions 4 December 2006
Posted by karenbuckmp in Early Day Motion.comments closed
Karen has recently signed the following Early Day Motions in the House of Commons:
EDM330 - Promoting Peace between Israel and Palestine
That this House welcomes the declaration of a mutual ceasefire in Gaza announced on 26th November as a positive first step towards resuming negotiations between Israel and Palestine; urges both sides to adhere to the terms of the ceasefire and to agree a mutual exchange of prisoners, including Corporal Shalit, Palestinian elected representatives and others held without trial; welcomes President Abbas’s efforts to form a Palestinian Government of National Unity; notes that the international community can help this by lifting the current embargo on aid to the Palestinian Authority and resuming direct contacts; notes that a ceasefire and humanitarian aid alone will not address the suffering and poverty endured by the Palestinian people; calls on the British Government to urge the Israeli government to lift its blockade of Gaza, to release immediately tax revenues owed to the Palestinian Authority, and to lift movement restrictions affecting the West Bank to stimulate the Palestinian economy strangled by the impact of occupation; further notes that the only way to secure lasting peace and security for both Israelis and Palestinians is a negotiated two-state solution based on UN resolutions and international law; calls for an end to actions which violate those principles, such as continued building of settlements and of the barrier on occupied land; and calls on the UK Government to promote proactively a lasting peace agreement and to uphold international law through the EU, the Quartet, the UN and as a High Contracting Party to the Geneva Conventions.
EDM257 - Cluster Munitions
That this House welcomes Norway’s decision to start a process to negotiate a prohibition on cluster munitions outside the framework of the Convention on Conventional Weapons; recalls that, a decade ago, a similar process in Ottawa led to the Anti-personnel Mine Ban Treaty; looks forward to the first conference to discuss the protection of civilians from the effect of cluster munitions to be held in Oslo from 21st to 23rd February 2007; and urges the UK Government to play an active part so that cluster munitions can be confined to the dustbin of history as soon as possible.
