Weekly Update
The Labour Government continues to deliver on its programme following the summer recess.
The Prime Minister stood on the steps of Downing Street and said the work of change would begin immediately. And he meant it.
This week has seen a raft of Bills progress through the House of Commons on their way to becoming law, all of which were our key priorities following the General Election in July.
Plans for bringing the railways into public ownership, to strengthen the Office for Budget Responsibility, and to create Great British Energy – all of these will bring benefits to residents in Enfield North and beyond.
Rail Public Ownership Bill progresses in the Commons
On Tuesday we took a significant step towards public ownership of our railways as our Rail Public Ownership Bill became the first major piece of legislation of this Government to reach the final Commons stages.
The Transport Secretary promised to “move fast and fix things”, and this Bill does exactly that, demonstrating the sheer scale of our ambition to rebuild Britain, putting transport at the heart of our plans for change.
This is not about ideology: it is about the practical need to deliver better services where they have failed, and deliver better value for taxpayer money.
Under the Conservatives, cancellations soared to record high levels, fares had risen almost twice as fast as wages since 2010, and strikes were costing the taxpayers £25m for every day they went ahead.
Services were crumbling under the Conservatives, and Britain’s rail network could not go on this way.
Fixing our railways is crucial to delivering growth and boosting productivity here in Enfield North and around the country.
Energy Bill
Ed Miliband MP led the Second Reading of the Great British Energy Bill, another commitment making its way through Parliament only two months on from the election.
With its planned headquarters in Scotland, Great British Energy will back energy generation projects in the UK, and bring profits back to the British people.
Great British Energy will lead projects through development stages to speed up their delivery, invest in energy projects alongside the private sector, support local energy generation projects by working with local authorities, combined authorities and communities, build supply chains across the UK, and explore joint working with Great British Nuclear.
This sits alongside action we have already taken to deliver clean power including lifting the ban on on-shore wind, consenting to more solar projects than ever before, and securing a record-breaking 131 new renewable projects.
I share the determination of the Government to deliver this landmark Bill.
Grenfell Tower Report
This week, we remembered the 72 lives that were lost in the Grenfell Tower tragedy. My thoughts go out to the bereaved families, the survivors, and residents in the local community.
The Grenfell Tower Inquiry Phase 2 report was released this week, and it is made clear that all these deaths were entirely avoidable, and the residents of Grenfell Tower were let down again and again by the Government and institutions that should have protected them. It is a source of national shame that the dangers of combustible cladding were known, but nothing was done - matters of safety of life were ignored, delayed or disregarded – and still no one has been held to account and change has been too slow.
This report is of national significance and must be a turning point, an important step towards accountability, justice and change.
The Government will consider all 58 of the Inquiry’s recommendations in detail and will respond in full to the Inquiry’s recommendations within six months.
General Debate on Technology in Public Services
On Monday, I had the honour of closing the general debate on Technology in Public Services for the first time in my new role as Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for AI and Digital Government.
I spoke about ensuring that the technologies of tomorrow deliver benefits for people in communities across the country and how the Government must harness and work with our incredible universities and innovative start-ups, while also leading by example by harnessing the power of technology in our public services to improve people’s lives.
I also spoke about the launch of a new at-scale digital apprenticeship programme, TechTrack, and rolled out training on AI for all civil servants to build their confidence.
Safety will be at the heart of all of this. Safety will also be embedded in our new AI Bill, which will introduce binding regulations on the handful of companies that are developing the most powerful AI systems of tomorrow. It will also be the foundational principle behind the Cyber Security and Resilience Bill, which will shore up Britain’s cyber defences and protect our public services in the decades to come.
You can watch my full speech here.
Enfield Council Meeting
Today, I met with the Chief Executive of Enfield Council, Ian Davis, as part of my on-going engagement with the council to bring issues to their attention that have been raised with me by residents these past months.
I raised numerous cases of road safety across the constituency, whether they be problems of cars speeding outside schools, or vans and trucks coming off the M25 and into our town at dangerous speed. I know how concerning these incidents are to you, so I wanted to remind Enfield Council of these concerns and to work with residents to make our roads safer for pedestrians.
I also continued my efforts to ensure that all parts of my constituency receive the support that they need, and to reduce the divide between the east and west of the constituency. We discussed ways in which the council can be at the forefront of addressing this imbalance, and I will continue to work with them so that all residents see an improvement in their area, wherever they live.
UK Parliament Week
Enfield North schools! This is for you!
Get involved in UK Parliament Week, the annual event that spreads the word about what Parliament is, what it does, and how you can get involved.
Find out more by hitting the link below
ukparliamentweek.org/en/