I had been intending for some time to write in praise of the fine women who volunteer to keep Paddington Cubs, Scouts and Beavers going. After all, I can see them at work in the garden of St Luke’s Church, Queen’s Park, if I look out of my front window on a Thursday evening. St Luke’s is blessed with a beautiful garden, and it is always a pleasure to see dozens of young people, most of whom won’t have any outdoor space of their own to play in, enjoying all that room. At any one time, this group alone involves 40-45 local youngsters, and I understand it has been in continuous operation for around 80 years. Other local branches are also well-used, and there has been an active Bangladeshi involvement as well. Having written a pamphlet about the importance of offering a range of out-of-school activities for our children and young people, to enable them to stretch themselves physically and try things they may not otherwise have access to, I wanted to praise what the Cubs, Scouts and Beavers actually provide. And I don’t mean the games and outings and skills, either, important though these are. I mean the more intangible benefits- the sense of being part of some bigger movement, with an ethos and particular expectations about behaviour and effort, and the moderate element of discipline that this entails. (Of course sports teams and drama classes can offer some of this- and many do, but I don’t think they have the same breath of depth). (more…)

Karen has pledged to the a ‘Guardian of the Memory’ of Michael Ringer, who was a Member of Parliament in his homeland of Poland before being mirdered duirng the Holocaust. Vad Yashem is an organisation dedicated to recording and remembering the millions of individuals who were killed during this bleakest period of human history. You can also sign up to become a ‘Guardian of the Memory, and learn more about the Holocaust and its victims at www.yadvashem.org.

That this House notes Holocaust Memorial Day is 27th January, the day the Nazi death camp Auschwitz-Birkenau was liberated; recognises the significance of this day and the importance of remembering and learning from the past especially when there are those who seek to denigrate and deny its significance; observes that the lessons of the Holocaust have not been learnt and racism, anti-semitism and intolerance continue in the UK and abroad; further observes that the international community has failed to prevent the occurrence of genocide in Cambodia, Rwanda, Bosnia, Iraq and now Darfur; thanks the City of Liverpool for hosting the national event and the Holocaust Memorial Day Trust for organising the day; supports 2008’s theme, Imagine, remember, reflect and react; applauds organisations like the Holocaust Educational Trust (HET) for their work and in particular recognises the impact the acclaimed HET visits to Auschwitz have had in shaping young minds; further notes that a Book of Commitment will be placed in the corridor between the hon. Members’ Cloakroom and hon. Members’ Staircase between 1430 and 1630, Monday 21st to Wednesday 23rd January; and encourages all hon. Members to sign it and mark a day that helps to ensure the memory of the Holocaust is kept alive to serve as a warning now and in the future.

Karen tabled a motion in Parliament about the recent increases in energy prices, which affect Londoners more so than people living in other parts of the country.

That this House notes with concern that a regional analysis of recent increases in energy prices indicates that London consumers are suffering larger proportionate increases than consumers in any other region in England, with an estimated 23.5 per cent. increase in gas prices and 22.1 per cent. in electricity prices, which are up to twice as high as those imposed on other areas; notes further that price rises announced by Npower introduce regional differentials in gas prices for the first time; recognises that there are no mechanisms within state benefits such as pensions, or within the tax credit system to assist low income households hit by regional differentials in costs; welcomes the fact that the Chancellor of the Exchequer has asked the Chief Executive of Ofgem to look at the relationship between wholesale price movements for oil and gas and domestic retail prices; and requests both the Government and the energy regulator to urgently review the issue of regional price differentials and their impact upon people on fixed and low incomes.

Until now, London’s pensioners have benefited from free travel- but only after 9am- however urgent their journeys. Now London’s Mayor, Ken Livingstone, has pledged to give all Londoners who are 60 and over access to free travel 24 hours a day. Once introduced, this extension will benefit 1 million older and disabled Londoners.

Speaking in a debate in Parliament on Wednesday, January 16th, Karen said that it was absurd that schools with limited space should be receiving money to improve sports and out-of-school facilities on the one hand and paying it back to Westminster Council on the other. One secondary school is paying almost £5,000 a year to use Paddington Recreation ground- which was re-developed with new pitches last year using- yes!- government money.

Read the full debate here.

Karen has tabled an Early Day Motion to Parliament:

That this House notes the contents of The Tenant’s Dilemma, a Citizens Advice Bureau report on the issue of retaliatory eviction in the private rented sector; expresses concern that some landlords are using the provisions of section 21 of the Housing Act 1988 to avoid meeting their responsibility to carry out repairs requested by tenants and are instead serving them with eviction notices when they make such a request; further notes that environmental health and tenancy relations professionals report that many tenants are deterred from accepting their help with disrepair problems because they fear such a response from their landlord; welcomes the independent review of the private rented sector announced on 12th December 2007; acknowledges the sector’s growing role in meeting housing need; further acknowledges the improved redress for tenants of social landlords proposed by the Housing and Regeneration Bill; further notes that international examples of good practice in legislating against retaliatory eviction can be found in 36 US states, France, New Zealand and Australia; supports the campaign led by the Citizens Advice Bureau and supported by the Chartered Institute of Environmental Health, Local Authorities’ Co-ordinators of Regulatory Services, the Housing Ombudsman, Child Poverty Action Group, Shelter and the Association of Tenancy Relations Officers to prevent retaliatory eviction by restricting the use of section 21 of the Housing Act 1988 where a tenant has recently taken steps to enforce statutory rights regarding disrepair or health and safety issues; and calls upon the Government to take steps to achieve this at the earliest opportunity.