Thomas McAvoy

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Parliamentary Update, 27 February 2008

Parliament returned last week after a short recess, which allowed MPs to get back and spend some time in their constituencies. As I’ve said before I think this is hugely important; Westminster may be where laws are made but you have to be in touch with your constituents’ concerns to be able to do the job properly.

The first thing that had to be dealt with was the European Union reform treaty. I’m not going to pretend that this is an issue which has gained huge public interest; given that the main purpose of it is tidying up vast quantities of current rules and regulations, it’s unlikely to be the main topic discussed in pubs and club across the country.

What the new EU Treaty will do is ensure the EU is run in a more effective manner. We have so many rules and regulations, and of course new members joining the EU; all of this means changes are needed. However what it won’t mean, in spite of what the Tories claim, is that Britain is signing away our right to govern ourselves.

The debate on the EU Bill went late (well after midnight) so it only seemed to be a short-time later that MPs were back in the House of Commons for the weekly Prime Minister’s Questions. Nobody disputes that former public relations man David Cameron is a very smooth performer, but I think that Gordon Brown increasingly has the measure of him. I suspect mainly because one thing the Prime Minister is very good at is facts and figures, and that will ultimately trump PR tricks any day.

The other big issue of the week was certainly Northern Rock. The reality is that what happened was the best option open to the government. Northern Rock faced a major crisis and one that could have spread to other banks if the government hadn’t stepped in to save it. The government first looked at a private company running this but eventually decided to take it into public control, a decision which most economists agree was the sensible option.

Friday saw me catching an early flight after Parliamentary business went late the night before. As well as my Friday surgeries I also went out to meet my colleague David Cairns, Minister of State for Scotland who was visiting the area. It’s important that government ministers come to visit different areas; it lets them see the positive impact a Labour government has had across the country whilst showing them the work we still have to do.