Subject: NewsBulletinfromAidanBurleyMP#20

Date: Friday,29July201116:30:36UnitedKingdomTime

From: AidanBurleyMP

To: news@aidanburleymp.org

 

In this edition: 

Aidan Burley MP’s Diary Website of the Week:Staffordshire Newsletter  MP presses for local groupsto have say in Forest’sfuture MP uncovers Biffa’ssecret plans to dump all UKwaste in Cannock Photo news:Longford SchoolSummer Fete Aidan backs newApprenticeship Fund “Winter-proof you home andsave cash”, says Chase MP MP welcomes plans toextend voting deadlines for overseas and overseaspersonnel voters Aidan in Parliament:Aidan questions PM onphone hacking inquiry Aidan in the papers:Fact-finding forests panelmay visit Cannock Chase Aidan in the papers:Calls for Piers Morgan toappear at phone hackinginquiry Aidan in the papers:The Audit Commission:spending watchdogaccused of wastingthousands on 'vanity snaps' Aidan in the papers:Politically Speaking Aidan in the papers:Week in Westminster 

 Issue 20 – Friday 29th July 2011

 

Since the last edition, Aidan has: 

·  Met with the Deputy Head of the Secretariat for the

Independent Panel for Forestry to express the strength of feeling of local people about the future of  Cannock ChaseForest.

·  Opened the new head office of local charity Dog AID at the

CVS building in Arthur Street, Chadsmoor.

·  Arranged for his Help Zone in Cannock town centre to try

and boost employment in the area by providing advice tolocal businesses and organisations on how to apply for assistance to take more apprentices through theGovernment’s new £25 million Higher ApprenticeshipFund.

·  Attended the Longford School Summer Fete.

·  Questioned the Prime Minister on the subject of the phone

hacking inquiry.

·  Been quoted in The Daily Telegraph condemning the Audit

Commission’s use of a taxpayer funded photographer  for their events.

·  Welcomed Government Chief Whip the Rt Hon Patrick

McLoughlin to Cannock Chase.

·  Been quoted in The Daily Telegraph, Metro and

International Business Times calling for  Piers Morgan toappear before the phone hacking inquiry.

Conducted a help and advice surgery at the MP Help Zone in

Cannock. If you would like an appointment at one of Aidan’s

future surgeries please call 01543 502 447 or email

aidan.burley.mp@parliament.uk.

 

Website of the Week: 

www.staffordshirenewsletter.co.uk 

The website of the Staffordshire Newsletter – which featuresAidan’s ‘Politically Speaking’ column this week.

 

 

 A date for your diary:Chase CommunityShowcase How to contactAidan Burley MP

 

MP presses for local groups to havesay in Forest’s future 

Aidan Burley MP presents his dossier to the Deputy Head of theSecretariat for the Independent Panel for Forestry, Mike Seddon. 

Last week Aidan met with the Deputy Head of the Secretariat for theIndependent Panel for Forestry, Mike Seddon, in order to express thestrength of feeling of local people about the future of Cannock ChaseForest. Mr Burley had called for the meeting after the Panel's decision not tovisit Cannock Chase as part of its latest round of visits. At the meeting, Aidan presented a dossier about Cannock Chase andMr Seddon said he would go back to the Panel and look again at apotential visit to the Chase. However, Aidan pressed for acommitment that if a visit was not possible, members of the Panelwould speak to local stakeholders so they can contribute their viewsto the report, currently being put together by the Panel. Subsequent to the wide scale of public interest in the Panel's workand the immense input to the consultation, the Panel's deadline for itsinquiry has been extended until April 2012, with a progress report duein November this year. Commenting after the meeting Aidan said: "I was delighted to meet with Mike Seddon to discuss the future of Cannock Chase Forest. I felt it was a constructive meeting, in which I believe Mr Seddon cameaway with a clear idea of the local people's passion for our greatest asset. He was particularly pleased with the dossier I presented to him,which highlighted the unique features of our great forest. "During the meeting I re-invited Mr Seddon and the Panel to visit Cannock Chase and see firsthand the rich bio-diversity of our great forest and the leisure and tourism opportunities. I also suggested they speak to local groups and residents so they can contribute their viewson how best to protect our forest to the report."  Aidan also brought the issue of Heritage Status to Mr Seddon'sattention, to which he confirmed that the Panel will consider the pointsraised, but at this moment the Panel would not be ruling anything in or out. 

Aidan has questioned Biffa's ambitions for the recently andcontroversially approved incinerator at the Poplars site. Uncovering excerpts from Biffa's original submission to StaffordshireCounty Council in February 2009, it states that if rail was used, theEnergy Recovery Facility recently approved could potentially servethe whole of the United Kingdom. It states: "There is potential for rail importation via the former Mid Cannock coal disposal point nearby, which is now a freight distribution facility.However, that site is not under Biffa's control and it is not clear what rail infrastructure remains. It should also be borne in mind that viabletravel distances by rail are far greater than by road, to the extent that the catchment area could effectively extend to all of mainland UK,which may or may not be politically acceptable to the Council."  Commenting Aidan said: "This submission from 2009 appears toshow Biffa's true ambitions. Not only does it seem Cannock Chasewill be the dumping ground of the West Midlands but, if Biffa get their way, potentially the dumping ground for the whole of the mainland UK. "I opposed this planning submission from the beginning, largely on thegrounds that it would be a disproportionately large facility for our local area. It would require rubbish to be lorry loaded in from all over theWest Midlands. Now we see Biffa want to import it from all over theUK. "Despite this stated intention, they failed to make their ultimate aimclear to the councillors in their application. I also understand that they also have plans for the extraction of 2.8 million tons of clay from thePoplars Landfill site, over a ten year period, all to be taken by road toa brick factory in Walsall. These aspirations are being progressed through the Staffordshire County Council Minerals Core Strategy. Thiswould also create a void of 1.4 million m3, equivalent to 2-3 yearsextension of the Poplars Landfill operations. Did they make the

 planning panel aware of this in their application?  "I believe they didn't and that is why I am continuing to call onStaffordshire County Council to judicially review this outrageous

 planning decision."  

Photo news:Longford School Summer Fete 

Chase MP Aidan Burley will be using his Help Zone in Cannock towncentre to boost employment in the area by providing advice to localbusinesses and organisations on how to apply for assistance to takemore apprentices through the Government’s new £25 million Higher Apprenticeship Fund. This new Fund, announced by the Prime Minister, will support theexpansion of apprenticeships up to degree equivalent in companies,particularly SMEs, where there is unmet demand for the higher levelskills that are necessary to create additional jobs and growth. This comes on the same day that it was announced that 900 peoplehave taken up an apprenticeship in Cannock Chase in the 9 monthsto April 2011, a take-up rate 50% higher than across the country asa whole. “The figures so far have been good, but I believe that we must domore,”  said Aidan. “Youth unemployment in Cannock Chase roseunder Labour to be amongst the highest in the West Midlands. That is why I want to use the facilities of the Help Zone to encourage thosewho have not yet taken the plunge.”  Figures released on Tuesday showed that 900 apprenticeshipsprogrammes were started by learners living in Cannock Chase in theperiod to April, compared to 580 in the same period in 2009-10.Nationally, the Coalition Government has delivered 326,700 starts inthe first nine months of the 2010/11 academic year – more thandouble its ambition – and means that the Government has met thetargets set by Gordon Brown in 2003, but which Labour failed to ever reach. The growth has been across all sectors, at all ages and alllevels. Commenting further on the figures Aidan said: “The growth we haveseen in apprenticeships, both locally and nationally proves that employers recognise them to be a sound platform for long termeconomic prosperity. Every £1 the Government spends on anapprenticeship is estimated to deliver a return of some £40 to thewider economy. More importantly, it provides an increased sense of self-esteem to those people who are learning a trade and earning their own way in the world. I see them as a key building block in thestrategy to return Cannock Chase as a thriving centre of skilled employment.” 

 

“Winter-proof you home andsave cash”, says Chase MP Aidan is calling on Cannock Chase residents to take action, winter-proof their homes and save money. With the costs of food, clothing and running a car all on the increase,one cost that consumers can take action to control, is their rising

 Commenting Aidan said: "We all know that household budgets arestretched. One area where households can take control is over their energy bills where simple steps such as switching supplier and improving your home insulation can help save you money. I would urge all my constituents to take action and get the free energy efficiency that they are entitled to, so that they can be ready in time for winter."  Following an agreement with Government, the major energy suppliersare committed to improving the energy efficiency levels of much of theUK's housing stock to the tune of £5.5billion. Through this scheme,many vulnerable people have access to free energy efficiencymeasures. Gearoid Lane, Managing Director of British Gas New Markets says:"Rising energy prices don't have to mean higher bills. Britain'shousing stock is some of the most inefficient in the developed world with £1 in every £4 spent on heating our homes wasted because of 

 poor insulation. Basic efficiency measures can make a difference. All our customers need do is contact us and we can get them the helpthey need."  

MP welcomes plans to extend votingdeadlines for overseas and overseaspersonnel voters Following an intervention by Chase MP Aidan Burley the Governmenthas confirmed that the electoral timetables for future elections will bereviewed in order to allow more overseas and service personnel tovote in elections Following calls from a number of overseas constituents, Aidan tableda Parliamentary Question on this issue urging the Government to takeaction to ensure that all such voters were given more time to returntheir ballot papers during an election. Under the existing system, postal votes cannot be issued to registeredelectors until at least 11 working days before the poll. The time takento print and issue the postal votes shortens this window even further and means that voters, particularly those overseas, are left with asmall timeframe within which to complete and post back their ballotpaper – something several constituents complained to Aidan about. The new provisions now being considered will mean that the electoral

bureaucratic timescales.”  

Aidan in Parliament:Aidan questions PM on phone hackinginquiry 

Wednesday 20th July 2011 

Click on the image above to watch Aidan’s question,which begins at 1:23.33.

 

The text of the exchange was as follows: Aidan Burley (Cannock Chase, Conservative): Did the PrimeMinister receive any advice from the editor of The Guardian, fromLord Ashdown or from the Deputy Prime Minister about the hiring of Tom Baldwin by the Leader of the Opposition? David Cameron (Prime Minister; Witney, Conservative): No, but Ihave received quite a number of representations from hon. Members,and quite a few from others as well.

Forest. 

Aidan in the papers:Calls for Piers Morgan to appear atphone hacking inquiry Metro

Thursday 14th July 2011 

Mr Morgan, who now works on US television,needed to ‘explain what he knows about the vilepractice of phone hacking and if he knew it wastaking place at the Mirror’, said Conservative Douglas Carswell.

‘No celebrity is too grand to come and answer questions,’ he toldpolitical blogger Paul Staines, aka Guido Fawkes. Mr Staines claims extracts from The Insider, a version of Mr Morgan’sdiaries, refer to phone hacking. Lib Deb MP Adrian Sanders claimed ‘the Daily Mirror, when under theauspices of Piers Morgan, is suspected of using voicemail interceptionto reveal Sven-Goran Eriksson’s affair with Ulrika Jonsson.’ The Daily Mirror has denied the claims, with publisher Trinity Mirror saying: ‘Trinity Mirror's position is clear. Our journalists work within thecriminal law and the PCC code of conduct.’ Tory MP Aidan Burley said: ‘In the light of allegations about telephonehacking during his editorship of the Daily Mirror, Piers Morgan shouldbe called to the inquiry.’

Lancaster House and the Reform Club. A reply to a parliamentary question shows that £250 was paid to Mr Noon for 32 photographs as part of a launch in December 2009. Portraits were also commissioned from a firm called Big StickPhotography, costing £1,670. A further £2,275 and £1,160 was paidto Big Stick “for a week’s worth of work in Sunderland” and for “on-siteshoots in Stockport and London”. In addition, the commission disclosed that three alumni events wereheld for former and current staff between 2009 and 2010. The first reception on Nov 4, 2009 was in Westminster, costing morethan £3,000 including room hire, equipment and refreshments. Asecond event was held on Nov 10, costing more than £4,000. On May 12 2010, at the Royal Horseguards Hotel in London, guestsattended a lecture by the chief executive of the National LotteryCommission. This cost £4,540, and was attended by 34 people – theequivalent of more than £130 a head. Aidan Burley, Conservative MP for Cannock Chase, said: “This isorganised treating at public expense. It is a scandal that taxpayers’money has been channelled into entertaining the mates of this Labour quango.” Eric Pickles, the Communities and Local Government Secretary,added: “This is further proof that the Audit Commission has lost itsway, and is not fit to be a spending watchdog.

examine criminal behaviour by the media and corruption in the police.The Government has also set up a wide-ranging and independent

  judicial inquiry under Lord Justice Leveson to establish what wentwrong, why and what we need to do to ensure it never happens again. There are three issues which I believe this inquiry must address. Thefirst two concern the police: the original investigation and why thatdidn’t go far enough, and the acceptance of cash payments from

 journalists in exchange for details of arrests and investigations. Both are serious issues and frankly corrupt practices which have beengoing on unchallenged for some time. As readers do we ever askourselves where those screaming front page tabloid headlines camefrom? How did journalists get such confidential information? Maybewe should ALL be much more questioning in the future.But the inquiry must also address the relationship between politiciansand the media, which has become far too close. Politicians have aduty to be transparent in their actions and David Cameron was right tosay that leaders of all parties have been too close to the press. Thedecision to make all meetings between Ministers and newspaper andother media proprietors, senior editors and executives recorded is astrong positive move in favour of greater transparency. Ed Miliband was also right to raise the issue of the size of theMurdoch Empire, and whether it is too big and powerful. However,

too close to the press and politicians must be transparent in their actions. For this reason, I am delighted to note that all meetingsbetween Ministers and newspaper and other media proprietors, senior editors and executives will now be recorded. And Ed Miliband was right to raise the issue of the size of theMurdoch Empire, and whether it is too big and powerful. However,when 70% of people get their news from the TV, and 73% of thosepeople watch BBC News, perhaps the power and size of the BBCneeds to be investigated as much as Sky. 

A date for your diary:Chase Community Showcase 

On Wednesday 3rd August 2011 Chase CVS and Aidan Burley MP

Aidan Burley MP – Putting Cannock Chase First! 

Published & Promoted by Aidan Burley MP, House of Commons, London SW1A 0AA