Betty Williams

Labour Party | Conwy

Parliamentary report for week ending 28th November 2009

Last week, Cumbria and other areas of the country suffered the most serious flooding for decades. On Monday, Hilary Benn, Secretary of State for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs reported to the House on actions taken to date by the Government and other agencies. He paid tribute to PC Bill Barker who lost his life in the floods in Workington while protecting the public. The Prime Minister and the Secretary of State had visited the flooded areas on Friday. They both paid tribute to all those who had been involved in responding to the emergency.

On Thursday evening, I attended the North Wales Police Federation Community Service Award presentation at the Quay Hotel, Deganwy. The winner of the Award this year was Constable Michael Smith who was recognised for his outstanding work as Community Beat Manager at Penmaenmawr. Constable Smith has set up the Bluelight scheme which is a community police project covering Penmaenmawr and Dwygyfylchi. It is a scheme involving children and young people from the area and has been a huge success. Other areas of North Wales are planning to set up similar schemes. I shall be drawing this scheme to the attention of the Home Secretary and his Ministers.

The Secretary of State for Health Andy Burnham MP has informed us of the good news about the Commonwealth Fund. This Fund looks at the ten most developed health systems in the world. In a survey of more than 10,000 primary care physicians in eleven developed countries, our NHS was rated top in a number of key areas including being the only country where the majority of doctors feel the quality of healthcare is improving. The annual survey of international healthcare comparisons this year polled primary care doctors for their views on their health systems. The UK was rated top in several categories including – improvements in quality over the past three years, least likely to report long waiting times for patients referred for specialist care, managing chronic conditions with specialist teams and using financial incentives to reward doctors for good patient experience. This is an endorsement of the reforms to GP contracts which links payment for quality.

The Labour Government, since coming to power in 1997 has moved the NHS from a poor to a good service. We now have to move it from a good to a great service which is more preventative and more people centred. It needs to be more productive and its services based around the patient.

I have supported Scope's 'No Voice No Choice' campaign. This is a campaign to ensure that people with communication impairments receive the support and equipment they need to speak for themselves. There are as many as 600,000 people in the UK who could benefit from the use of Alternative and Augmentative Communication (AAC).

On Wednesday, I met representatives from Scope to discuss the final part of their three years' research. The research captures the experiences of disabled people with communication impairments and the views of speech, language and communication professionals. This final report focuses on future commissioning services. It provides solutions which ensure delivery and support effectively meet the needs and aspirations of disabled people. AAC users from across the country and professionals working in the field attended the event.

Sir Emyr Jones Parry, Chairman of the All-Wales Convention met us at Westminster for a briefing on his report which was published last week.

Later in the day, I attended the Annual General Meeting (AGM) of the Inter-Parliamentary Union British Group under the chairmanship of Speaker John Bercow. Ivan Lewis MP, Minister of State, Foreign & Commonwealth Office addressed us.

I met representatives from the RSPB at Westminster to discuss their visions for a sustainable economy, where wildlife is valued for its own sake, as well as for our wellbeing. Senior members of the RSPB were present. Over the next twelve months, they will be seeking the views of parliamentarians on key environmental issues. They are asking decision-makers to invest in the natural environment and ensure that we live within our ecological, as well as economic, means.

Wednesday was the United Nations International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women. I met representatives form the White Ribbon Campaign (WRC) Towns Programme. This programme is directed at councils who wish to demonstrate their commitment to the aims of WRC. The aims are – raising awareness, understanding and providing services in order to reduce the incidence of domestic violence and to provide the local community with increased support and understanding of this issue. Councils are being asked to meet certain criteria, depending on size, in order to hold the nationally recognised title of White Ribbon Town with the full support of WRC staff. There are a variety of initiatives available as part of this Award to local businesses and townspeople.

On the same day, a group of us met Hannah Austin, Policy Officer at Welsh Women's Aid to discuss the Home Office consultation on Violence against Women. We also discussed the Welsh Assembly Government's strategy on violence against women. We were provided with a copy of the Violence Against Women in Wales Action Group's publication 'Violence Against Women - Why an Integrated Strategy in Wales?'