The new man in the shadows | Counsel

The new man in the shadows | Counsel



Great article about the new Shadow Attorney General.  Click on the link above.

Our plan to tackle the housing crisis

Labour's plan for supporting families with the costs of childcare

Labour's Better Plan for Rural Britain

Today Maria Eagle, Shadow Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, launched LABOUR'S BETTER PLAN FOR RURAL BRITAIN - a plan to build a rural economy that works for working people and supports rural families and communities.

"Rural Britain has been left behind under five years of the Tories and Lib Dems. A cost-of-living crisis, a low-pay, low-skill economy and a lack of power to make decisions about their future is holding back too many rural communities." 

Here are just five of the things Labour will do to stand up for rural communities:

1. We'll put right the damage done by the Tories’ decision to abolish the Agricultural Wages Board, replacing it with a new taskforce to tackle low pay and protect conditions for agricultural workers.
2. We will build more affordable rural homes by strengthening requirements on developers to build affordable housing in new developments.
3. We'll back small businesses that form the bedrock of the rural economy by cutting and then freezing business rates for smaller businesses which employ over two thirds of the rural workforce.
4. We will end the unfairness that many rural families face in an unregulated off-grid energy market.  We'll extend the remit of the new energy watchdog to off-grid households, protecting millions of rural families.
5. We will devolve new powers to our county regions, making sure our recovery extends beyond the City of London.

Download a full copy of LABOUR'S RURAL MANIFESTO by clicking here.

Your Local Labour Candidates for Broughton

A Better Deal for Broughton

There is no doubt what will have the biggest impact on this side of the district in the next four years – the massive expansion planned for Magna Park.

We welcome the new jobs and the economic prosperity they will bring. But there is a danger – the danger that councillors from elsewhere in the district will see the bigger Magna Park as a money pot.

Some might try and spend that money elsewhere in Harborough.

Others will see it as a means of offloading responsibility for everywhere west of Husbands Bosworth.

We in Broughton have needs too - not just employment but affordable housing, more facilities for families and public transport.

What we desperately need is someone willing to stand up and shout for our rights!

Sandra Parkinson is standing in Broughton Ward

Sandra and her family have lived in Broughton Astley for fourteen years.  In 2013 she organised a petition to get traffic calming measures at the junction of Croft Way and Station Road.  Even the County Council agreed - but a subsequent petition about the exact siting let them shelve the project! The situation is only going to get worse with more housing and more traffic.  Sandra says, "I look to the people of Broughton Ward to support me in my bid to get peace of mind on this road safety issue."

Paul Maglione is standing in Sutton Ward

Paul has lived in Broughton Astley since 2012.  He is a workplace representative for Unite and joined the Labour Party because of his concerns over the NHS, zero hour contracts, and the erosion of employment rights.  Paul says, "Harborough District Council must get off its knees and spend some of its windfall from Magna Park on a regular bus service to and from Broughton.  Get cars off the roads and give local residents the chance of local jobs!"

d on this road safety issue.

Your local Labour candidates for the villages

Giving Villages a Voice

What does your District Council do for you?  Precious little if you live in a village west of the M1. The odd planning application, perhaps, but otherwise...  It's really not good enough and your chance to change things comes on May 7th.  Not that you'd know it, but it's not just about the General Election.  Every seat on Harborough District Council is up for grabs, and the suspicion is, your sitting councillors would rather you didn't notice.  That way they can have another four years dancing to the Tory tune of cuts, cuts, cuts, and pocketing generous allowances for doing very little.

Your Labour candidates, on the other hand, are committed to village life, protecting the rural environment whilst encouraging local jobs and demanding more facilities and services for local residents.

Malcolm Maguire is standing in the Dunton Ward.

Malcolm undertakes research into aspects of employment, education, training and the labour market, with particular specialisms in: the youth labour market; vocational education and training; employers' recruitment strategies; lifelong learning; career guidance; and employee development.  He has published widely on a range of education, employment and training related topics, and is a trustee of a Leicester-based charity which support vulnerable and marginalised people in securing employment.

Liz March is standing in Misterton Ward

Liz has lived in Walcote since 2003 and for the last six years has served as a Parish Councillor.  Her four children, now grown up, were all educated in local state schools but Liz fears that recent changes make it difficult for schools to plan for the future.  She says: "Housing is also important. I want my children to have somewhere suitable to live, but this need must be balanced by the desire to protect and preserve the environment."

Elaine Carter is standing in Peatling Ward

Elaine has lived in Arnesby for 16 years, and enjoys the village community. She sits on the Parish Council, contributes music to the annual May Fair, shares in the church cleaning rota, and enjoys the local film and book clubs. She is a keen activist on environmental issues.  Elaine says: "Having worked as a consultant paediatrician at Leicester Royal infirmary for over 20 years, I have first hand knowledge of how cuts to services affect poorer people most."

Remember to VOTE LABOUR ON MAY 7, or nothing will ever change.

Labour’s election pledges (BSL)

Let the people decide

Look at what David Cameron has done in five years...

Amanda Hack - your Labour Candidate for South Leicestershire

Amanda's election address should be dropping through your letterbox any day now.  Congratulations to the election team - it looks great and the contents are spot on.

If yours hasn't arrived yet, here are some key points:

• We've seen massive cuts to local services - social care, children's services, school support, youth services, all either closed or cut to the bone.  The next tranche of Tory cuts will close libraries and museums.  Labour is committed to a fairer alternative.
• The NHS as we know it cannot survive five more years of Cameron.  Labour will hire 20,000 more nurses and 8000 extra GPs, funded by a clamp down on tax avoidance, a mansion tax on properties worth than £2 million, and a levy on tobacco firms.
• The cost of childcare has risen by 30% under the Tories.  Labour will provide 25 hours free childcare each week for parents with 3 and 4 year-olds.  Labour will work with primary schools to provide childcare for school-age children from 8am to 6pm, and help parents balance work and family life.

Find out more about Amanda and her campaign by visiting the constituency party's website or by following Amanda on Twitter @hack4labour.

Right to Buy - another uncosted, unfunded & unbelievable announcement from the Tories

Emma Reynolds, Labour’s Shadow Housing Minister, responding to the Tories’ announcement on Right to Buy for housing association tenants, said:

The Tories can’t stand up for working people. On their watch wages are down £1,600 and we’ve seen the longest fall in living standards since the 1870s. 

This is yet another uncosted, unfunded and unbelievable announcement from the Tories. 

Having exhausted the magic money tree, the Tories now want people to believe that they can magic up billions of pounds a year from selling off a few council homes. Last year that raised just over £100 million, while this policy costs £4.5 billion a year. 

Under David Cameron home ownership is at its lowest point for three decades – there are over 200,000 fewer home owners since 2010. 

Labour will help people own their own home, that’s why we support Right to Buy. But in the 21st Century that means building homes and not forgetting the vast majority of people that want to buy their own home but currently rent privately or live with their parents. 

Labour’s manifesto set out a better plan for all local first time buyers to get priority access to homes built. We will ensure Britain builds the homes working people need, getting at least 200,000 homes built a year by 2020, backed by a comprehensive plan - the first in a generation - and a £5 billion Future Homes Fund to support the building of homes for first time buyers.”

Why can’t David Cameron defend his record?

Britain can do so much better than this