Rutland and Stamford MP Alicia Kearns promotes her dementia campaign with the help of Angela Rippon
It was a privilege to welcome Angela Rippon and an amazing panel of dementia experts to Rutland last week to share their experience on how we can make Rutland the first dementia friendly county in the country, writes Rutland and Stamford MP Alicia Kearns.
Angela shared a heartfelt insight into her experiences of caring for her mother who was diagnosed with dementia in 2004. Dementia is a disease of the brain, however as Angela said, the parts of the brain which remain working well are still the person that you love, who wants to be involved and part of the family. It is now down to us to enable those living with dementia to live well in our community so their carers and family can also live well.
Down in Westminster I recently raised the case of Rutland resident Lizzy Nicholl during prime minister’s questions to right the shameful wrongs she faced during her time as head of RAF recruitment. Lizzy was forced to resign from the role after being put under extreme pressure to implement illegal hiring practices. Despite being proven right, Lizzy is yet to receive compensation or justice. I look forward to taking up the prime minister’s offer of a meeting between Lizzy and MoD ministers to secure the compensation she deserves.
As a result of Labour imposing VAT on independent schools, our councils are facing increased applications for education, health and care plans (EHCPs). It is vital SEND children receive the extra support they need without delay, which is why I urged the government to ensure local authorities have the support they need to process and complete EHCPs within the statutory timeline.
In local news, I’ve been out and about discussing your priorities and concerns, including recently with residents of Oakham, Stroxton, Teigh and Bisbrooke. In Stamford I recently visited the Job Centre Plus to hear more about the service they provide and how we can work together in the future with local businesses and schools.
It was interesting to visit a sugar beet farm in Uffington during the harvest to learn more from local grower Peter and the NFU. Our growers and food producers are so important to our rural economies and security, which is why I’ve called on the government to commit one day of the budget debate to food security and supporting our farmers. I will also be following up with the government on the issues Peter raised.
Many residents in Castle Bytham have raised the need for a footpath to connect neighbouring villages, so it was good to meet with the chairperson of the parish council and the village’s councillor last week to discuss progress on plans to connect our rural communities.
Nationally I write ahead of this week’s budget, and whilst it has been significantly briefed to the media, I will wait for it to be published in full. However, going into it we remind ourselves of Labour’s two biggest election promises: not to raise taxes on “working people” and to stick to our ‘iron-clad’ fiscal rules. The chancellor it appears will break both these promises - she has announced one already, betraying hard-working families with what is reported to be the biggest budget tax raid in history, and with an attack on business owners and wealth creators who keep our economy growing.
We have also presented our petition against the winter fuel cuts which is both wrong and economically illiterate. I struggle with putting ideology above a practical focus on growth and communities, and will as ever do all I can for our communities.
