Weekly Update
It has been another busy week in Parliament following the Prime Minister’s announcement of our Plan for Change last week. At the start of the week the Prime Minister visited the Gulf to discuss investment from the Gulf Cooperation Council.
Ponders End Coffee Afternoon
Today I had the pleasure of hosting my final of three coffee mornings in Ponders End at The Qube. It was really useful to hear directly from residents about important local issues, including concerns around anti-social behaviour, environment , and park maintenance.
If I can help you with anything please get in touch via feryal.clark.mp@parliament.uk or 020 8804 4543.
Visit to Chase Farm
This week I visited Chase Farm Community Hospital. I met with Mark Lam, group chair, Peter Landstrom, group chief executive, and Palmer Winstanley, chief executive of Chase Farm Hospital.
I was delighted to hear how well Chase Farm Hospital is performing and their plans for including more services.
I was also pleased to hear about the closer working between North Middlesex University Trust and Royal Free London Group who are planning to come together as one organisation. Both hospitals have been undertaking extensive engagement and consultation with constituents who have provided overall supportive responses. I am hopeful that by coming together as one the Royal Free Group with North Mid will be able to provide better service to Enfield North residents by reducing waiting times, improving access to specialist care locally, better joined up community services and greater opportunities to benefit from the latest cutting-edge cutting edge medical research and trails of new treatments.
Winning MP of the Year at SME4Labour
On Tuesday I had the pleasure of attending the SME4Labour Annual Excellence Awards. I was pleasantly surprised to receive the award of MP of the Year alongside my colleague Stephen Kinnock MP. Thank you to all those who voted for me. It was such a proud moment to celebrate our amazing work over the last year.
Planning Reforms
This week the Deputy Prime Minister brought forward the much needed reforms to the planning framework to turbocharge our ability to deliver the 1.5 million new homes the country needs.
We have published our new National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) that will support our commitment to build 1.5 million homes over this Parliament, deliver the biggest boost to social and affordable housing in a generation, unlock clean energy, and restore growth.
This major overhaul will sweep away the previous Government’s damaging changes that have caused housebuilding to plummet and will shake-up a broken planning system which caves into the blockers and obstructs the builders. This Labour Government will not shirk responsibility. We are taking the tough choices needed to deliver for our country. Our Plan for Change means overhauling planning to make the dream of a secure home a reality for working people. Councils must play their part in fixing the worst housing crisis in living memory and today we are calling on them to update their local plans and deliver the homes their communities want to see.
I look forward to working with Enfield Council to bring these benefits to Enfield North.
Investment in clean energy
The Clean Power 2030 Action Plan published today by the Labour Government offers an optimistic vision of Britain’s future, with energy security, lower bills, good jobs and climate action.
This will only happen with big, bold change and that is why Labour is embarking on the most ambitious reforms to our energy system in generations.
Every family and business in Britain has paid the price of Conservative failure on energy security. We faced the worst cost of living crisis in generations because the Tories left us exposed to international fossil fuel markets controlled by dictators like Putin. As a result of their failure to invest in clean energy, the Conservatives left a legacy of high energy bills, energy insecurity and a lack of clean energy jobs.
With this plan, the Labour Government will oversee the biggest upgrade to our energy system in generations. For too long, there has been no plan for building new energy infrastructure based on an assessment of what the country actually needs for the long term. As a result, billions of pounds of clean energy projects have been held up by a clogged-up planning system, and a dysfunctional power grid queue that means renewables projects cannot get online.
The government will now plan an energy system based on what the country needs. The plan sets out bold measures to get more homegrown clean power to people.
This is a plan to reindustrialise Britain with good jobs for our communities. Only this week we’ve seen new investment in Carbon Capture and Storage in Teesside and in offshore wind supply chain in the North East. Labour’s clean energy mission is already delivering good jobs - and we will continue to do so.
Small Business Saturday
Last Saturday was Small Business Saturday. It was a great opportunity to celebrate all the amazing small businesses we have in Enfield North.
I am proud of the steps our new Government has already taken to support small businesses. Because, after just four months, the contrast between our pro-worker, pro-business Labour Government and the last 14 years of Tory failure is already clear.
While the Tories presided over crumbling high streets, rising shoplifting offences and national skills shortages, Labour is already delivering change for small businesses.
Labour’s number one mission is to kickstart economic growth - to create jobs, get more money into people’s pockets and make Britain the best place in the world to start and grow a business.
We can only deliver on that mission if small businesses – the lifeblood of so many of our towns and cities up and down the country – have what they need to flourish.
That’s why we’re cracking down on late payments, taking action to reduce retail crime and will be launching our small business plan to ensure firms can thrive and grow.
We’re also reforming business rates to help level the playing field for high streets and have launched Skills England to transform opportunities and drive growth.
We have done more for Britain’s small businesses in four months than the Tories did in 14 years. And change has only just begun.
Pension Credit
The deadline to apply for Pension Credit in time to receive the 2024/25 Winter Fuel Payment is 21 December.
Pension Credit is a vital benefit. Not only is it worth £3,900 a year on average, but it also acts as a gateway to other benefits. This means even just one pound could passport pensioners to extra help including help with Council tax, Housing Benefit, and the Winter Fuel Payment.
I would urge all pensioners, and their friends and family, to check to see if they or their loved could be getting additional support via our online calculator, which you may find here: Pension Credit calculator - GOV.UK.
Pensioners whose weekly income is below £218.15 for a single person or £332.95 for a couple should check to see if they could be eligible. This work comes alongside wider plans to ensure economic stability for pensioners by protecting the Triple Lock, improving energy security and keeping energy bills low through the Warm Homes Plan and cutting NHS waiting lists.
We are committed to supporting pensioners – with millions set to be up to £1,900 better off this parliament through our commitment to the triple lock.
The Warm Homes Plan will support investment in insulation and low carbon heating – upgrading millions of homes over this Parliament. This government’s long-term plan will protect billpayers permanently and reduce fuel poverty.
We are also supporting the households that need it most by:
• Delivering the £150 Warm Home Discount for low-income households from October.
• Extending the Household Support Fund with £421 million, to ensure local authorities can support vulnerable people and families.
• Ensuring around 1.3 million households in England and Wales will continue to receive up to £300 in Winter Fuel Payments. If you are having any issues with Pension Credit please do not hesitate to contact my Office.
Syria
I know many of you are aware and concerned by the ongoing situation in Syria following the collapse of the Assad regime in recent days.
I have long hoped to see Assad gone from Syria.
I welcome the opportunity this brings for Syrian people. However, we must not be blind to the risks. Assad’s collapse is not a guarantee of peace, but also a moment of danger alongside opportunity for Syrians and the region.
The humanitarian situation in Syria is dire. Millions are refugees largely in neighbouring Türkiye, Lebanon and Jordan. Seeing so many start to return to Syria is positive, but a lot depends on what happens now. The group whose offensive first pushed back the regime, Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), is a proscribed terrorist organisation in the UK as an alias of al-Qaeda. This makes me cautious. So far, HTS has offered reassurances to minorities in Syria and committed to international co-operation over monitoring chemical weapons.
I know Ministerial colleagues will judge HTS by its actions towards all civilians. I can assure you I will continue to monitor the situation very closely.