Weekly Update - 25 April

Dear John

Supreme Court

This week, the Education Secretary and Minister for Women and Equalities Bridget Phillipson made a statement in the House of Commons about the Supreme Court ruling in the case of For Women Scotland Ltd Vs The Scottish Ministers. In 2018 Scottish Ministers issued guidance on the definition of a woman in the eyes of the Gender Representation on Public Boards Act. That guidance stated that a woman in the Act bears the same meaning as a woman in the Equality Act 2010 – and included trans women with a Gender Recognition Certificate. For Women Scotland challenged this guidance, saying that “sex” in the Equality Act means biological sex, so that a trans woman with a Gender Recognition Certificate is a man for the purposes of that Act. The case was appealed to the Supreme Court, on 16th April the Court ruled that “sex” in the Equality Act means “biological sex”. This means that a person will be considered as their biological sex for the purposes of the Equality Act, regardless of whether or not they have a Gender Recognition Certificate. There’s now a need to ensure that this ruling is clear across a range of settings – from healthcare and prisons, to sport and single sex support groups. The Equality and Human Rights Commission, as Britain’s equalities regulator, is working quickly to issue an updated statutory Code of Practice to reflect this judgement. I attended the statement in the Commons welcoming the ruling in the judgement. This was an important judgement that brings clarity to the law, making it easier for employers, service providers and others to understand their responsibilities and avoid breaking the law. While the Supreme Court was clear about the importance of biological sex, it also stressed that trans people do retain clear protections in law and should be able to live their lives free from harassment and discrimination. We need a society that treats everyone with respect. I am committed to protecting trans people through a full trans inclusive ban on conversion practice and work to equalise all existing strands of hate crime. You can watch my intervention here:

Breakfast Clubs

This week, the first of Labour’s free breakfast clubs opened across the UK. This will make a huge difference for families and their children in Birmingham, Edgbaston. Our clubs will improve children’s attendance, attainment, readiness to learn, wellbeing and behaviour, and give parents more flexibility to work and more money in their pockets – up to £8,000 a year. Read more here.

Police Accountability

We have announced new rules that police who fail a vetting check will face automatic dismissal. In recent years, serious cases which have badly failed all proper policing standards have damaged public trust in the officers who are supposed to protect them, and undermined the majority of brave, committed officers who work tirelessly to keep us safe. Labour is restoring confidence in policing by making sure only officers of the highest standards are allowed to serve our communities to help keep us safe. Read more here.

EU

The Government has now set out how we are negotiating a new partnership with the EU – with ruthless pragmatism. The benefits of negotiating a new partnership with the EU are clear – reducing barriers to trade, driving economic growth and keeping us safe in an increasingly dangerous world. Pursuing a new partnership with the EU is about meeting the needs of our times. This is not about ideology or returning to the divisions of the past, but about ruthless pragmatism and what works in the national interest. Our Labour government is determined to work with our allies in the EU to make the continent safer, more secure and more prosperous. This week, Keir Starmer hosted Ursula von der Leyen at Downing Street to discuss how countries can work together to deliver energy security, as well as the progress made strengthening the UK-EU relationship. We are working with the EU to support Ukraine and to tackle cross-border crime to keep us safer at home. The EU is our largest trading partner, so we are working to reduce barriers to trade across the economy to help drive growth. Read more here.

Business

Our Chancellor Rachel Reeves has unveiled plans to maintain a level playing field for British businesses. She has announced that British businesses will be supported to trade freely acting on practices that undercut fair trade, such as the dumping of cheap goods in the UK. This will help to support many British businesses that operate on our high streets, such as Sainsbury's and Next, who have been undercut by foreign companies. The government has announced immediate action by the Trade Remedies Authority (TRA), the body responsible for defending the UK against certain unfair international trade practices. The Chancellor also announced her intention to review the customs treatment of Low Value Imports, which allows goods valued at £135 or less to be imported without paying customs duty. Read more here.

Water

This Labour government is cleaning up our rivers, lakes and seas. New powers have come into force meaning that water executives who cover up illegal sewage spills could face up to two years in prison – the toughest ever measures in history. This landmark legislation will also see new powers to ban the payment of unfair bonuses for polluting water bosses. This comes alongside £104 billion of private sector investment to rebuild and upgrade our water system, and an Independent Commission into the water sector – the largest review since privatisation. Read more here.

Great British Energy Bill

An amendment has been tabled to the Great British Energy Bill that will enable the company to act to ensure forced labour is not taking place in its business or supply chains. As well as this, Great British Energy will appoint a senior leader with responsibility for ethical supply chains and modern slavery. Read more here.

Mental Health Bill

The Mental Health Bill has been transferred to the House of Commons. The Mental Health Bill delivers the Government’s manifesto commitment to modernise legislation to give patients with severe mental illness greater choice, autonomy, enhanced rights and support, and ensure everyone is treated with dignity and respect throughout their care and treatment. The Bill also includes measures to improve the care and support of people with a learning disability and autistic people, reducing reliance on hospital-based care. These reforms to the Mental Health Act 1983 are long overdue. Many of the processes in the Act are out of step with a modern mental health system, whilst the Mental Health Act will continue to play its vital role in keeping people safe. I look forward to hearing from constituents on the Mental Health Bill. Read more here.

Retirement Savings Boost

The Government has unveiled reforms to combine small pension pots to make working people better off, which will boost retirement savings for the average worker by around £1000. There are now 13 million of the small pots, holding £1000 or less. This is a hassle for savers and can stop them getting a good return on their savings if they have to pay multiple flat rate charges. Merging these small pots will also save the pensions industry around £225 million in unnecessary admin costs. Read more here.

Care in the Community

This week in Parliament, we reaffirmed Labour’s plan to rescue NHS dentistry. We’re rolling out 700,000 extra urgent NHS dental appointments and introducing a supervised toothbrushing scheme to prevent tooth decay that will reach up to 600,000 children in the most deprived areas. We have also recruited over 1,500 GPs as part of our plan to bring back the family doctor and end the 8am scramble. Community pharmacies play a vital role in delivering patient services. This government has brought in a record investment in community pharmacies, including making the morning-after pill available free of charge and more funding for medicine supply. Read more here.

Military Homes

Our Armed Forces serve with extraordinary dedication and courage to keep us safe. It is only right that they and their families live in the homes they deserve. That’s why our Labour government is providing military families in my constituency, and 2528 families in the West Midlands, with homes fit for heroes. New measures for forces families, include higher move-in standards, more reliable repairs, renovation of the worst homes, and a named housing officer for every family. Read more here.

Online Safety Act

New laws published yesterday under the Online Safety Act, coming into force in July, mean that social media and tech companies must implement strong age assurance and protection methods to help shield children from harmful content. This should be a watershed moment, prioritising children’s safety by law. Read more here.

Women's Institute

I’d like to thank the Women’s Institute for sharing their report on the hidden experiences of women who are often the designated primary caregivers for their families and yet are left battling access to dental care.

Multiple Sclerosis

This week, I attended the MS Society’s Parliamentary Event, where I had the chance to meet and hear from people with multiple sclerosis. MS is a neurological condition that affects over 150,000 people in the UK and many of my constituents. I want to thank all those that wrote to me asking me to attend this important event.

Pope Francis

I joined millions across the world grieving the death of His Holiness Pope Francis. Pope Francis’ closeness to those suffering and his advocacy for an end to global violence were always a priority. His determination to visibly live out his faith inspired people across the world to see afresh the church’s teachings of mercy and charity. My thoughts are with Catholics across the world.

Local News

Birmingham Bin Strike

In Parliament, I put on record my thanks to everyone involved in the clean-up of Birmingham, including many volunteers. I asked the Minister if he agreed with me that the council must resolve equal pay issues, which is precisely what the deal on offer will do. Thank you to constituents who have been in touch. Driving Tests

In March, I asked a Parliamentary Question about the wait times for driving tests in my constituency and was shocked to find that Birmingham was one of the worst in the country, with learners waiting 24 weeks for a test. Under the previous Conservative government, waiting times at some test centres in Birmingham quadrupled. To open up more tests and break down barriers to opportunity, I welcome the news announced by the Government this week. This will mean: • Those in other DVSA roles who are qualified to examine will be asked to return to the frontline to provide practical driving tests • Doubling the number of permanent trainers to skill up new driving examiners quickly • Accelerated consultation to investigate the potential abuse of the driving test booking system and prevent bots from accessing tests • Reintroduction of overtime pay incentives for everyone delivering driving tests Read more here. Free Travel Scheme

It’s great news that five million extra bus journeys have been taken since our Labour Mayor Richard Parker took office, thanks to a landmark free travel scheme to get more people to try the bus. Among those to have benefitted from free travel are hospital staff, care leavers, apprentices and charities. A free evening travel offer was also used to support the region’s nighttime economy in the run up to Christmas. Getting more people onto our bus network means we can cut traffic congestion and deliver cleaner air for our region. That’s why Labour is working to make our region’s buses more affordable and work better for local people. Street Surgery

It was great to be out talking to residents at my regular street surgery. Today, I visited York Road in North Edgbaston to hear about the issues that matter most to my constituents. St George’s Day This week, we celebrated St George’s Day – this was a time to come together and celebrate our pride in England’s shared history, inheritance and values.

Best wishes,

Preet Kaur Gill MP Member of Parliament for Birmingham Edgbaston, covering Bartley Green, Edgbaston, Harborne, North Edgbaston and Quinton Promoted by David Evans on behalf of the Labour Party, 20 Rushworth Street, London SE1 0SS

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