Welcome ...
Welcome to this my thirty-eighth electronic news bulletin.
Remember, you can always contact me directly if you have any questions for me.
You can forward the bulletin on to your friends and family, who can sign up themselves by clicking here for my website.
Best wishes,
Edward Timpson
Member of Parliament for Crewe & Nantwich
I have recently ...
- Launched British Heart Foundation 'Love Notes' Campaign, in Crewe
- Met with local business, Energy Communications, in Crewe
- Held constituency surgery, in Crewe
- Patrolled with Cheshire Police in Crewe town centre
- Visited Hungerford Primary School, in Crewe
- Spoken at South Cheshire Harriers annual awards dinner, in Crewe
- Met with North West Ambulance Service regarding emergency first-responders, in Nantwich
- Met with 4Children regarding children & families in United Kingdom, in Parliament
- Met with InsightPA regarding social care provision, in Parliament
- Hosted North West Rail Campaign Parliamentary dinner, in Parliament
- Introduced Private Member's Ten Minute Rule Bill, 'Ambulance Response Times, Local Reporting', in Parliament
- Sat on Children, Schools & Families Bill Committee, in Parliament
- Sat on Children, Schools & Families Select Committee, in Parliament
- Asked Secretary of State for Communities & Local Government about the Government's proposed council tax revaluation, in Parliament
- Spoken in debate on Royal Mail Industrial Relations regarding mail staff in Crewe & Nantwich, in Parliament
Photos & Video ...
You can view all my photos and video at edwardtimpsonmp.com
I have recently...
- Introduced Private Member's Ten Minute Rule Bill, 'Ambulance Response Times, Local Reporting'. view
- Asked Secretary of State for Communites & Local Government about the Government's proposed council tax revaluation. view
- Spoken in debate on Royal Mail Industrial Relations regarding mail staff in Crewe & Nantwich. view
Anger at Crewe tax office closure
Crewe and Nantwich Chronicle
UNION bosses have accused the Government of ‘betraying’ workers following the announcement Crewe tax office is to close in March next year with a loss of 22 jobs.
Treasury Secretary Stephen Timms has just confirmed in a letter to Crewe and Nantwich MP Edward Timpson that only 30 of the 52 staff working in the Oak Street office have been redeployed – leaving 22 facing life on the dole.
Colette Smith, the West Cheshire branch secretary of the Public and Commercial Services Union, said this week: “Management said they’d help our members in find jobs in other government departments – but in reality there are no jobs available locally.
“Many of the staff in Crewe have given 20 to 30 years of committed service to the HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) and that commitment has been betrayed.”
The 22 staff affected are unwilling or unable to be redeployed as they live outside what is considered a reasonable daily commute. Ms Smith said: “There are people who cycle to work who don’t have cars. We have a woman whose husband drops her off but he can’t drop her off in Stoke before going to his own job in Manchester.”
She added many of the workers were carers or mothers with young children who needed to work near their homes.
Workers at Crewe have fought a lengthy campaign backed by Mr Timpson to stop the closure of the Crewe office.
Mr Timpson accused the Government of showing a complete disregard for the Crewe workers and said they were also removing a valuable local service.
“We’ve become quite famous in the Treasury for our campaign against closure, staving off the decision for 20 months and resulting in them sending not one but two very senior officials to bear the bad news,” said Mr Timpson.
“My sympathy goes to those who have enjoyed long careers at Crewe tax office, only to have them spoiled by unnecessary relocation to Hanley or voluntary redundancy.”
Joan Patrick, of Gainsborough Road, who had just received help with her tax at the Crewe office, told the Chronicle as she left: “I think it’s a terrible shame it’s going.
“The staff in there have been wonderful and helped me.”
© 2010 Trinity Mirror North West and North Wales Ltd
James Duddridge backing Parliamentary bill on ambulance times
SouthEnd Echo
AN MP is supporting a Bill calling for more localised reporting of ambulance response times.
James Duddridge, MP for Rochford and Southend East, is backing the Bill put forward yesterday by Edward Timpson MP to introduce requirements for ambulance services to provide more accessible and localised reports of their response times.
© 2001-2009 Newsquest Media Group
Crewe and Nantwich MP Edward Timpson is loud and clear over bowel cancer screening
Crewe and Nantwich Chronicle
CREWE and Nantwich MP Edward Timpson is helping to raise awareness about bowel cancer.
Mr Timpson met representatives of Beating Bowel Cancer at its annual Be Loud Be Clear reception.
Bowel cancer is the UK’s second biggest cancer killer. Of the 100 people diagnosed every day, almost half will die from the condition. But more than 90% of cases can be treated successfully if diagnosed early enough.
All people aged 60-69 in England are invited for screening every two years through the NHS bowel cancer screening programme. Yet in Crewe and Nantwich only 57% of people have taken part in screening.
Mr Timpson said: ‘I was pleased to learn today that 767,034 people in the Midlands and North West screening hub have taken part in bowel cancer screening to date.
“However, too many people are still dying from this curable disease. If 77% of people in the Midlands and North West screening hub took part in bowel cancer screening in the next two years 1,796 cancers could be detected. That is why I am being loud about the importance of screening to ensure that people in Crewe and Nantwich stay clear of bowel cancer.”
Hilary Whittaker, chief executive of Beating Bowel Cancer, said: “We are delighted that Edward Timpson is supporting Beating Bowel Cancer’s call to action on screening.
“While significant improvements have been made since the start of the programme, we know more lives could be saved if participation in screening increased.
“That is why Beating Bowel Cancer is calling for policymakers and the NHS to commit to ensuring one million additional people are screened by 2012 and urges the Government to extend the age range for screening in England to those in their 50s so that more people at risk of bowel cancer have the opportunity to be screened for, and beat the disease.”
© 2010 Trinity Mirror North West and North Wales Ltd
Letter from Nantwich MP Edward Timpson
Edward Timpson, The Holly Holy Day Society
When I became MP for Crewe and Nantwich one part of the job that I was looking forward to most was the chance to represent people that I know to be rightly proud of their area and its traditions. One of the most memorable and impressive displays of this came when my wife and I had a great time at last year's Holly Holy Day and the re-enactment of the 1644 Battle of Nantwich. And since then I was kindly invited to become a patron of the event, which of course, I was delighted to accept.
Since the revival of Holly Holy Day in 1972, it has become much more than just a recreation of that famous battle. It is now a day not just for local people to enjoy, but also for people from across Cheshire and the UK to come to Nantwich, and see what all the fuss is about.
From what I can tell 2010's Holly Holy Day promises to be even bigger and better than last year, with a market, various performances and street entertainers spread across the town, as well as a safe area dedicated to children. It should be another fantastic day.
And not only is it an excuse to have a day out and celebrate a bit of our shared history, it will also hopefully provide a welcome boost to businesses in the area, who might otherwise be suffering from the post-Christmas slump.
The organisers have told me that this year they are particularly keen to expand the event, in an effort to attract as many visitors as possible, and really put Nantwich and Holly Holy Day on the map. And finally- just a word to say a big 'Thank You' to the Holly Holy Day Society, the Sealed Knot and to all the other volunteers whose hard work makes all the festivities possible, and to all the people of Nantwich and the local councils and businesses for supporting them.
© The Holly Holy Day Society - Battle of Nantwich
Kevin wins progress award
Crewe and Nantwich Chronicle
EX-WORLD champion boxer John Conteh and local MP Edward Timpson were among the the VIPs at a celebratory charity dinner at Haslington Cricket Club.
The boxer and the MP are both patrons of Supported Community Business, a therapeutic workshop based on Crewe Gates Industrial Estate for people with learning difficulties who wish to explore the world of work in a safe and controlled environment.
The trainees carry out real work tasks for local businesses, ranging from mail shots to packing components for flat packs, enabling them to experience work first-hand while gaining confidence and life skills.
The highlight of the evening, attended by most trainees, was the presentation of this year’s David Hough Trophy.
It was awarded to Kevin Schofield, the trainee judged to have made the most significant progress over the past 12 months.
Christine Hough and Paul Edwards received certificates of merit in recognition of personal goals they had achieved during the past year.
All three winners were delighted their progress has been recognised in an official way.
© 2010 Trinity Mirror North West and North Wales Ltd
MP in talks on adoption
Crewe and Nantwich Chronicle
Crewe and Nantwich MP Edward Timpson was on a panel discussing fostering and care at the Royal Society of Arts in London last week.
The talks were part of Barnardo’s ‘Counting the Cost of Care’ conference, addressing obstacles to fostering and adoption in the UK.
The charity says that80% of people have never even considered fostering – contributing to a national shortage of 10,000 foster carers.
Before becoming an MP in 2008, Mr Timpson was a barrister specialising in family law and his family has fostered more than 80 children.
© 2010 Trinity Mirror North West and North Wales Ltd
Crewe-based Fujitsu workers strike in row over jobs and pay
Crewe and Nantwich Chronicle
WORKERS at Crewe- based Fujitsu are to strike again this week in a row over jobs, pay and pensions.
Staff at the Crewe site of the technology giant, who took part in strike action on Friday, are expected to walk out again this Friday.
Further strike action is also earmarked for next month.
Crewe and Nantwich MP Edward Timpson visited staff at the Crewe Business Park site last week after being contacted by the unions.
He has also signed a motion in Parliament calling for a dialogue to be established between Fujitsu's management and the Unite union.
Speaking after his visit Mr Timpson said: “The staff here are all highly trained and work very hard, as seen by the fact that Fujitsu Services’ profits more than doubled last year. The workers here have told me their concerns and Fujitsu needs to sit down with them and negotiate to resolve this dispute and avoid further strike action.”
Last year Fujitsu announced it was to lay off 1,200 employees.
This number has now reduced.
Unite says about 70 UK workers are now at risk of compulsory redundancy.
Union bosses say a pay freeze imposed earlier this year and plans by the company to close the main final salary pension scheme to future accrual, reduce the total pay package of each affected employee by around 20%.
Fujitsu employs 260 workers at Crewe.
Peter Skyte, Unite national officer for IT and communications, said: “We still believe this dispute can only be resolved by Fujitsu sitting down with us to address the issues of jobs, pay and pensions.”
© 2010 Trinity Mirror North West and North Wales Ltd
NHS data hides real picture, says MP
Civil Service Network
The NHS should publish detailed data to show the wide variation in ambulance response times, an MP has said.
Conservative backbencher Edward Timpson, MP for Crewe and Nantwich, said the data nationally published gave patients no real indication of how long they might wait for the emergency service.
Department of Health (DH) targets dictate that ambulance trusts must reach 75 per cent of serious call-outs within eight minutes.
Timpson told the Commons on Tuesday that the NHS in his own area, the North West, had managed 74.3 per cent of scores, but that hid the fact that ambulances were only meet the target time for 14.3 per cent of calls in some postcode areas.
The MP, who was introducing a bill demanding local reporting of response times, said such a low figure was "unacceptable", even in rural areas.
He also said more detailed data was available "at the push of a button", but was currently only published in response to freedom of information requests.
"What I hope my Bill will do is to begin to address the absence of proper local accountability that exists across the ambulance service, and in doing so help to improve the outcomes for patients wherever they may happen to live," he said.
Although Timpson's bill will not make into law due to lack of parliamentary time, it does have cross-party support.
A DH spokesman said the department has no plans to change the level at which ambulance data is collected. "The department regularly reviews the level of data that it collects to ensure that it is able to adequately monitor NHS performance without placing an unreasonable burden of reporting on the NHS," he said.
""It is a matter for the local NHS to ensure there is appropriate provision of emergency services that are responsive to people's needs.
"Many local NHS services already look at localised performance data, but whether and how they do this is up to each trust to decide.
"The Department of Health only collects national data at ambulance trust level. SHAs and PCTs have the responsibility for ensuring that national response time standards are delivered and maintained by trusts."
© 2010 Dod's Parliamentary Communications Ltd.
MP highlights worrying bowel screening figures for Nantwich
Nantwichnews
Only 57% of people aged 60-69 in Nantwich and Crewe have had bowel cancer screening since it became available on the NHS, figures show.
Everyone aged 60-69 is entitled to take part in the NHS bowel cancer screening programme every two years.
Nantwich MP Edward Timpson recently met with the charity Beating Bowel Cancer at their annual ‘BE LOUD BE CLEAR’ reception at the House of Commons.
The charity aims to highlight the importance of screening and hopes to screen one million additional people in the UK over the next two years, which could save more than 2,000 lives through early diagnosis.
Bowel cancer is the UK’s second biggest cancer killer. Of the 100 people diagnosed with bowel cancer every day, almost half will die from the condition. Yet over 90% of cases can be treated successfully if diagnosed early enough.
Mr Timpson said: “I was pleased to learn today that 767,034 people in the Midlands and North West screening hub have taken part in bowel cancer screening to date. However, too many people are still dying from this curable disease.”
And Hilary Whittaker, Chief Executive of Beating Bowel Cancer, said: “Whilst significant improvements have been made since the start of the programme, we know more lives could be saved if participation in screening increased.”
© 2010 Nantwichnews
Ambulance response times 'should be published'
ePolitix
Data on local ambulance response times should be published, according to a Tory MP.
Introducing a ten-minute rule motion in the Commons this afternoon, Edward Timpson (Con, Crewe and Nantwich) said his Ambulance Response Times (Local Reporting) Bill would require ambulance services to provide more "accessible and localised" reports of ambulance response times.
He told MPs that regional ratings were "distorting and disguising enormous variations within a region" as smaller localities within larger areas could be neglected.
The MP, who took the traditionally Labour seat in a by-election in April 2008, said because of this the public has no meaningful way of establishing how their local service is performing.
Timpson said he had managed to acquire figures only through submitting a freedom of information request.
But the data was available on ambulance service computers at the "push of a button" so should be published as a matter of course.
And he hoped his Bill would begin to address the absence of "proper local accountabilities" in the ambulance service.
© 2010 Dod's Parliamentary Communications Ltd.
Fujitsu strikes to escalate
Socialist Worker
Fujitsu workers are escalating their fight for jobs, pay and pensions with five more days of strike action set to take place.
More than 1,450 Unite union members at the IT company struck solidly for the seventh day on Friday of last week.
They are angry at plans to make workers redundant, the imposition of a pay freeze and management’s desire to close the final salary pension scheme.
The compulsory redundancies are to take effect from Sunday, so there is an urgent need for other groups of workers to back this fight.
The attacks are coming from a profitable company.
Action
Fujitsu staff in Northern Ireland struck on Tuesday of this week, while those in England, Scotland and Wales were to take action on Wednesday.
They were to lobby their MPs in parliament on the day.
The union has four more days of strikes – on Friday of this week, Monday and Friday of next week, and Monday 8 February.
Pressure is being stepped up on the company in other ways.
Twenty two MPs have signed an early day motion supporting the workers. Unite sponsors over 160 Labour MPs.
Strikers received their first visit from an MP last week.
Incredibly, the MP in question was Edward Timpson, the Tory MP for Crewe & Nantwich.
Many are wondering why Labour MPs haven’t visited picket lines.
The union last week fought off an attempt by Fujitsu to force it to withdraw the notice of action on a legal technicality.
Workers are demanding that Fujitsu negotiates properly with Unite.
They are determined to keep up their fight until a deal, acceptable to members, is reached.
Alan Jenney, a Unite rep in Crewe, said, “The strike is gathering pace. We had the largest number of people picketing yet on Friday of last week, with 24 members outside the building.
“People feel that the company has not really responded to us.
“We could do with a bit more publicity from the national side of things.
“Edward Timpson MP attended our picket line on Friday to get the views of members on the dispute.
“In some ways that’s surprising, but it’s a shame that that the local Labour candidate hasn’t been down to talk to us.”
Profitable
John Garvani, a Unite rep in Wakefield, said, “The strike has opened a lot of people’s eyes. They see a profitable company that is not negotiating with the union about the issues behind the dispute.
“The next few days have an extra importance as the remaining compulsory redundancies take effect on 31 January.
“There are less than 100 people at risk from this now, and you would think that a company with 11,500 staff could absorb that number of people.
“It’s not as if we’re short of work for people to do.
“The strike is having an effect on the company. In Wakefield some of the desks for customers are being staffed by a small amount of people on strike days.
“This will be having an effect on the major high street retailers we do work for.”
Unite needs to make this dispute, which is about issues that matter to millions of workers, a key priority for the union.
It should also be putting pressure on its sponsored MPs to support the early day motion and the workers’ fight.
Fujitsu workers are planning campaign and solidarity meetings around the country on 8 February, which should be a key date in trade unionists’ diaries.
© Socialist Worker
James supports bill calling for more localised reporting of ambulance response times
Politics.co.uk
James Duddridge, Member of Parliament for Rochford and Southend East, is today supporting a Bill put forward by Edward Timpson MP to introduce requirements for Ambulance Services to provide more accessible and localised reports of ambulance response times.
Regional Ambulance Authorities currently publish Ambulance Response times for the entire region but not on a local level.
James said:
“I am very pleased to be supporting this bill today. Regional ambulance authorities currently collect response times at a local level, but it is not published. The East of England Ambulance Trust may have met their targets for response times in most months, but these figures do not tell the full story.”
“It is clear to me that rural areas, like Foulness, are likely to have a longer response time than for an emergency call out in central Southend. I have written to the East of England Ambulance Trust asking for a breakdown of ambulance response times in Rochford and Southend by postcode, in order to fully assess the response times of ambulances in our local area.”
© 2004-2010 www.politics.co.uk
Crewe MP Meets Fujitsu Workers
Crewe and Nantwich Guardian
WORKER'S at Crewe's technology giant Fujitsu had the opportunity to air their grievances to local MP Edward Timpson last week.
On Friday Mr Timpson paid staff a visit at their site at Crewe Business Park, which employs around 300 people, after he was contacted by union bosses.
Last year Fujitsu announced that it was to lay off 1,200 employees, although this number has since been reduced.
Despite this staff have since taken industrial action over grievances involving redundancies, pay cuts and changes to their pension plans.
Mr Timpson has also signed a motion in Parliament calling for a dialogue to be established between Fujitsu's management and the Unite union.
Speaking after his visit Mr Timpson said: "The staff here are all highly trained and work very hard, as seen by the fact that Fujitsu Services' profits more than doubled last year.
"The workers here have told me their concerns, and Fujitsu needs to sit down with them and negotiate to resolve this dispute and avoid further strike action."
© 2001-2009 Newsquest Media Group
Radical Plans To Fight Crime
Crewe and Nantwich Guardian
CREWE and Nantwich MP Edward Timpson has strongly endorsed radical new plans to tackle crime and restore confidence in Britain’s ‘broken’ criminal justice system.
He said the importance of the new Conservative plans is underlined by analysis revealing that there were 1,693 violent attacks on people across Crewe and Nantwich in the last year.
This represents a rise of 148% per cent in the last decade.
But Mr Timpson said the new plans will give Crewe and Nantwich citizens greater protection if they have to defend themselves against intruders in their homes, or if they stop a crime being committed in the street.
He said: “We will give new powers to Cheshire East Council to fight booze-fuelled antisocial behaviour and stop supermarkets selling alcohol at below cost-price which is destroying law-abiding local pubs and fuelling low-level crime."
He also says his party will publish detailed street-by-street crime statistics online every month, in an open and standardised format, so people know the real level of crime in their neighbourhood.
Mr Timpson added: “Over the last decade the Government has launched endless initiatives and top-down schemes which have made little difference.
"Their broken promises have undermined people’s trust.
"We can’t go on with the police filling in forms instead of fighting crime.
“Our hard-working police officers deserve the highest praise.
"But many people across South Cheshire are hugely frustrated with our criminal justice system.
"They feel that it’s just not on their side anymore.
“These major proposals will help put the law back on the side of local people in Crewe and Nantwich and give our police the full support they so richly deserve.”
© 2001-2009 Newsquest Media Group
MP Backs Cancer Screening Event
Crewe and Nantwich Guardian
CREWE and Nantwich MP Edward Timpson last week met with representatives from the charity Beating Bowel Cancer, at their annual Be Loud Be Clear reception.
The event, at the House of Commons, aimed to raise awareness of early screening for bowel cancer, the UK’s second biggest cancer killer.
Mr Timpson said: “I was pleased to learn today that 767,034 people in the Midlands and North West screening hub have taken part in bowel cancer screening to date.
"However, too many people are still dying from this curable disease.”
Hilary Whittaker, chief executive of Beating Bowel Cancer, added: “We are delighted that Edward Timpson is supporting Beating Bowel Cancer’s call to action on screening.
"Whilst significant improvements have been made since the start of the programme, we know more lives could be saved if participation in screening increased.”
© 2001-2009 Newsquest Media Group
Haslington Charity Evening
Crewe and Nantwich Guardian
PATRONS of a South Cheshire charity John Conteh and Edward Timpson MP have joined trainees, staff and guests for a four course celebratory meal at Haslington Cricket Club. Supported Community Business is a therapeutic workshop, based on Crewe Gates Industrial Estate.
It was created to help people with learning difficulties who wish to explore the world of work in a safe and controlled environment. The trainees carry out real work tasks for local businesses, ranging from mail shots to packing components for flat packs, enabling them to experience work first hand whilst gaining confidence and life skills.
The highlight of the evening was the presentation of this year’s David Hough Trophy, which was awarded to Kevin Schofield, the trainee judged to have made the most significant progress over the past 12 months. Christine Hough and Paul Edwards received certificates of merit in recognition of personal goals they had achieved during the past year.
© 2001-2009 Newsquest Media Group
Crewe and Nantwich MP says Tories 'will fix broken criminal justice system'
Crewe and Nantwich Chronicle
CREWE and Nantwich MP Edward Timpson has strongly endorsed radical new plans set out in the Conservatives’ draft election manifesto to tackle crime and to restore confidence in Britain’s ‘broken’ criminal justice system.
He says their importance is underlined by new analysis which reveals there were 1,693 violent attacks on people across the constituency last year, a rise of 148% per cent in the last decade.
Mr Timpson says the new plans will give people greater protection if they have to defend themselves against intruders in their homes, or if they stop a crime being committed in the street.
“We’ll give new powers to Cheshire East Council to fight booze-fuelled anti-social behaviour and stop supermarkets selling alcohol at below cost-price which is destroying local pubs and fuelling low-level crime,” he said.
He says his party will also publish detailed street-by-street crime statistics online every month so people know the real level of crime in their neighbourhood.
He says: “Over the last decade, this Government has launched endless initiatives which have made little difference. Their broken promises have undermined people’s trust. We can’t go on with the police filling in forms instead of fighting crime.
But the MP reserved praise for the area’s police officers, saying: “Our hard-working police officers deserve the highest praise. But many people across South Cheshire are hugely frustrated with our criminal justice system. They feel that it’s just not on their side anymore.
“These major proposals will help put the law back on the side of local people in Crewe and Nantwich and give our police the full support they so richly deserve.”
© 2010 Trinity Mirror North West and North Wales Ltd
Nantwich MP meets Cheshire Fujitsu staff over job fears
Nantwichnews
South Cheshire workers of technology giant Fujitsu aired their grievances to Crewe & Nantwich MP Edward Timpson.
The MP visited staff at their Crewe Business Park office, which employs around 300 people, after he was contacted by unions.
Last year Fujitsu announced it was to lay off 1,200 staff, although this number has since been reduced.
Despite this, staff have taken industrial action over grievances involving redundancies, pay cuts and changes to their pension plans.
Mr Timpson has also signed a motion in Parliament calling for a dialogue to be established between Fujitsu’s management and the Unite union.
Mr Timpson said: “The staff here are all highly trained and work very hard, as seen by the fact that Fujitsu Services’ profits more than doubled last year.
“The workers here have told me their concerns, and Fujitsu needs to sit down with them and negotiate to resolve this dispute and avoid further strike action.”
© 2010 Nantwichnews
38th "Battle of Nantwich" wows thousands of visitors
Nantwichnews
Thousands of people watched on as the 38th Battle of Nantwich Holly Holy Day took over the town.
The annual event, which this year was free to spectators, saw members of The Sealed Knot re-enact the great Civil War battle.
Mayor of Nantwich Cllr Edith Williams and Nantwich MP Edward Timpson and his family were also present.
Spectator Jonathan White, who took these photos, said: “It was a little muddy in parts, but a very well organised and well attended event.”
© 2010 Nantwichnews
5 ways to contact Edward Timpson
- By email: timpsone@parliament.uk
- On the web: edwardtimpsonmp.com
- By phone: 01270 501 725
- By post: 30 Victoria Street, Crewe CW1 2JE
- In person: Click here to see surgery times
No comments:
Post a Comment