Bruce George MP visited Barr Beacon Language College on Friday 27th March 2009. He discussed developments at the school and highlighted the improvements.

He also met Spiros Georgiou who was successful in becoming one of two MYP (Member of Youth Parliament) representatives for Walsall.

Bruce George invited Spiros down to London for a couple of days to see the work of Members of Parliament at the Houses of Parliament.

Bruce George MP invited local constituent Madeleine Holland who has worked tirelessly in the Caldmore community to visit 10 Downing Street with him. Madeleine got to experience being at the centre of British politics during her trip.

Madeleine said: “I feelt highly honoured to be invited to number 10, the home of our Prime minister Gordon Brown. Bruce works tirelessly for the community and I believe he is the most industrious MP. He always make you feel comfortable in his company.”

One of the key tools Members of Parliament have to raise issues in the House of Commons are what we call Early Day Motions (or EDMs). These are short motions that Members propose and which other members can sign in agreement. In effect they are petitions that allow MPs to have their opinion of a particular issue put on record in Parliament and can on occasion influence public policy. Over the last week or so, I have been involved in a number of EDM’s, three of which I have written and tabled, a number of others I have signed. The three I have tabled include one welcoming a petition by the Royal British Legion which calls for more assistance to the ex-service community over 65, a third of whom currently live below the poverty line. Another that I have worked on celebrates the 60th Anniversary of NATO, which takes place in a few weeks. The third EDM I have tabled calls on the energy watchdog, Ofcom, to focus more of its attention on working to lower energy costs and protect consumers.

Over recent weeks I have visited a number of the local schools in Walsall South and I have been very impressed with what I’ve seen. Clearly a lot of money has been pumped into local schools over recent years and it is obviously having a positive impact. I was also very impressed with the new campus at Walsall College. One issue relating to these local schools that I have been disappointed with, however, is the Council’s decision to charge local schools a surcharge fee of somewhere between £10-20,000 This comes after the schools annual budgets have been written and agreed upon. By demanding this payment it will result in schools having to make cut backs and in some cases could lead to staff being laid off.

We’ve recently celebrated National Apprenticeship Week, so last week I questioned the government on the number of apprenticeships it is funding, both nationally and in Walsall South. Apprenticeships are vital for our economy as we need a UK workforce which has a greater skill-set so we can survive and compete when we come out of the recession. I was told by the Minister that in 2007-08 we saw a record high of 225,000 young people start on an apprenticeship, a rise of over 150,000 from 1996-97. In Walsall South last year 420 people started on an apprenticeship scheme, the highest number in five years.

The government has just produced a consultation paper on Violence Against Women and Girls. I fear in the current economic environment, relationships will suffer because of the additional pressures on families and this will undoubtedly in an increasing number of cases lead to physical violence. We are at a period when budgets are being discussed; I hope that the spending on deterring violence and dealing with the consequences as undertaken by the truly excellent Walsall Domestic Violence Forum will not be subject to a further attack, this time on its 2009/10 budget.

I was sad to hear that the Editor Natalie Missenden and reporters George Makin and Craig Winyard are leaving the Walsall Advertiser. I would like to thank them all for their professionalism, dedication, courtesy, and political fairness. They are all a credit to their profession.

Bruce George MP, leader of the UK Delegation to the NATO Parliamentary Assembly, today tabled an Early Day Motion in Parliament welcoming the 60th Anniversary of NATO on the 4th April. Bruce George, who is also Vice President of the NATO Parliamentary Assembly was joined in the EDM by a further ten members of the NATO PA.

Speaking today Bruce George said “NATO is probably the most enduring alliance in history. It survives as it is needed in this increasingly dangerous and volatile world. It’s evolved into being much more than just a defence organisation.”

The EDMs text read –

“That this House recognises and commemorates the 60th anniversary of NATO on 4 April 2009; pays tribute to NATO’s historic role in safeguarding the security and freedom of its members and, with the end of the Cold War, in promoting and extending stability and security to its new members; acknowledges the UK’s role in establishing NATO and its continued commitment to the Alliance; welcomes the close co-operation between NATO and the NATO Parliamentary Assembly and acknowledges the important role of Parliamentarians; stresses the importance of a co-operative relationship between NATO and the Russian Federation based on their common strategic interests; welcomes the accession of new member states to the Alliance and supports the Bucharest Summit Declaration which kept NATO’s door open for future enlargement with European democracies which are willing and able to assume the responsibilities and obligations of membership; underlines NATO’s crucial role in assisting Afghanistan to establish a secure environment for political and economic development; calls for a more equitable distribution of responsibilities across NATO’s member states; highlights NATO’s engagement around the world to build security and foster stability, from the Balkans to Darfur and to relief support following the Pakistan earthquake; and acknowledges the important role NATO plays in strengthening the Allies’ common values of democracy, human rights, individual liberty and the rule of law and reaffirms NATO’s irreplaceable role as the guarantor of its members’ security and an indispensable promoter of stability throughout the Euro-Atlantic region and beyond.”

Bruce George met local resident Linda Cooper, a tenant of White Hart and members of the Landscaping Team who have restored the gardens to how they may have looked almost 400 years ago.

White Hart was originally the family home to the Hawe family and constructed sometime during the 17th century. It has also been documented that Queen Henrietta Maria, wife of Charles I, stayed there during the English Civil War.

Linda Cooper said: “The tenants of White Hart would like to take this opportunity to thank Caldmore, especially the Gardening Team for doing such a brilliant job in renovating the front gardens of the White Hart. We appreciate being asked our opinions at how best to design a colourful frontage that will enable not only visitors to the area but also our local community to appreciate the splendour of the building and the history it represents.”

Last week you may have seen a story in the media about a fourteen girl who was very seriously burnt after spending just 19 minutes on a sunbed. She received first degree burns to 70% of her body. This story highlights the dangers of sun beds and demonstrates the desperate need for a legal code of conduct for such companies.

In Parliament I chair the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Skin in which members of both Houses of Parliament meet regularly with doctors, nurses, pharmacists, pressure groups etc, to discuss issues affecting those with skin complaints. We produce, very much like a select committee, detailed reports based on the acquisition of a great deal of evidence. I then lead a small delegation of the group to meet the Minister to discuss our recommendations and what action the Department of Health intends to take. Just a few weeks ago we published our latest report “Skin Cancer – Improving Treatment and Care”, this is the eleventh report that the group has produced. In that report we raised a number of serious concerns about the use of sunbeds and the increased risk of cancer to those that use sunbeds. A study conducted by the International Agency for Research into Cancer concluded that those who begin to use sunbeds before they turn 35 increase their risk of malignant melanoma by 75 per cent.

However equally concerning is the emergence of stronger and more powerful sunbeds. Since 1998, there have been technological advances which have resulted in new, more powerful ‘fast tan’ units. These have become very popular in the UK, along with the emergence of unsupervised sun parlours. It is these unsupervised sun parlours which are the greatest concern. The Health and Safety Executive has issued guidance that recommends, amongst other things, that sunbeds should not be used by anyone under 16, those with fair skin, or those who have previously been burned. However as last weeks story highlighted while this guidance remains voluntary people will ignore these rules.

The All-Party Group therefore recommended that the Health and Safety Executive’s advice should be made mandatory for all sunning parlours, and should include a ban on use of sunbeds by those under 18. We also recommended that the un-staffed, coin operated sunbeds such as the one the young girl used last week, should be banned unless they can provide clear proof of compliance with the HSE’s advice. Further more, better, and more visible point-of-sale information should be mandatory where sunbeds are available, advising people, in detail, of the health risks associated with sunbed use.

I visited one parlour in the West Midlands that had very limited supervision. It had warning notices all around on what to do and not to do, but I suspect many don’t bother to read. This 14 year old broke many of the rules and was therefore complicit in her own sad experience. Despite this I am emboldened in my desire for supervised premises and mandatory guidance. I would distinguish the reputable sector of the market that seeks to minimise the risk of abuse and error.

Bruce George MP today welcomed figures showing an 18.1 % rise in the number of young people from Walsall South going to university in the last ten years. The government has worked hard to expand opportunities for young people to get a degree, and these figures show that young people from Walsall are benefiting.

Over recent years we have seen a number of initiatives introduced to widen participation in higher education. These have included:
Student grants so that over two thirds of students get a full or partial grant of up to £2,835
The Aimhigher scheme as well as the Aimhigher mentoring scheme to raise young peoples’ aspirations, encourage them that to believe that university could be for them, and help them get there
Expansion of the gifted and talented programme to help pupils reach their potential
Encouraged universities to form deep, long term structural links with schools, such as sponsoring an academy or trust school, to help raise aspirations, drive up standards, and help young people apply to university.
Increased attainment at GCSE and A-level so that more young people have the necessary qualifications to go to university
Required all universities to publish their admissions policies and procedures, and show they are being fairly implemented
Increased investment in higher education by over 23% since 1997, so that more young people than ever before have the opportunity to get a degree.

Speaking today, Bruce George MP said:

“I very much welcome the rise in young people going to university from Walsall South. Ten years ago, some young people round here thought that university wasn’t for them. But we’ve worked hard to raise aspirations and help them get the qualifications they need, and all the hard work is paying off.

But there is still much more that can be done. Far too few young people from Walsall go on to Higher Education. Everyone involved in education must redouble their efforts to ensure that everyone has the opportunity to take advantage of the excellent higher education establishments that we have in the UK.

I’m glad the government transferred the responsibility for education in Walsall away from the Council to SERCO. Since that decision good progress has been made in improving education in Walsall, but know is not the time to be complacent, we must continue the effort to improve education in the city.”