LISTENING TO WELLINGBOROUGH AND RUSHDEN

Newsletter from Peter Bone MP
Member of Parliament for Wellingborough & Rushden
MAY 2008

HEALTH
Over the last couple of months the Listening to Wellingborough and Rushden Campaign has achieved a huge success in the fight for NHS treatment for Wet Eye Age Related Macular Degeneration (Wet AMD).

As reported in my last newsletter my campaign in Parliament helped to persuade the National Institute for Clinical Excellence (NICE), the government’s body for rationing or denying health care services in England and Wales to issue new guidance stating that treatment for Wet AMD should be available on the NHS. This decision was made in December of last year.

However, not all Primary Care Trusts in England and Wales followed this new guidance, including our local PCT, Northamptonshire.

I am now gladly able to report that after a strong local campaign, Northamptonshire PCT has decided to treat sufferers of Wet AMD on the NHS. This is a tremendous success and one that will save the sight of many people who before this decision would have been left to go blind unnecessarily. I would like to thank all those people who contacted me about this campaign, without whom we would not have been able to persuade the relevant authorities to change their policies.

Last week, the results of the Government’s ‘Annual Health Check’ were announced. The Annual Health Check is a nationwide survey of patients who have been in hospital over the last year. Kettering General Hospital fared well in the survey which is a great credit to the hard working doctors, nurses and staff at the hospital. However the survey highlighted a big problem which both Kettering and Northampton Hospitals face. Waiting times. Both hospitals were in the top 20% of hospitals nationally with the longest waiting times. At Kettering Hospital, 26% of those surveyed said that they had had to wait more than six months for an NHS operation. This is after the Prime Minister stated that no one would wait more than six months for an operation back in November 2006.

These results prove that we are in desperate need of a new hospital in Wellingborough to take the burden away from Kettering and Northampton. Since these survey results were announced last week I have been lobbying the Government on the issue.

Thank you once again for all those who have signed my petition for a new local hospital. We are still getting new signatures every day and if you know of anyone who would like to support my campaign, please contact me. Details at the end of the newsletter.

OVERDEVELOPMENT
Another issue which is causing a lot of concern to local residents is overdevelopment. The Government is forcing 52,000 new homes onto north Northamptonshire over the next few years. This equates to a 50% rise in housing. It is estimated that up to a third of this housing will be used by migrant workers from Eastern Europe.

I have met with 8 protest groups in Wellingborough and Rushden who are concerned about overdevelopment and the effect it will have on our already overstretched infrastructure.

Recently the Speaker of the House of Commons granted me a half hour debate in Westminster Hall on overdevelopment. I explained to the Minister who was present that Wellingborough can not possibly cope with all these new houses being built because our public services are already stretched. I demanded that proper infrastructure and public services must be in place before anymore development takes place. In the last couple of years we have lost Post Offices and our local Chief Superintendent. Police numbers have been cut in our area, there are no NHS dentists and NHS waiting lists are too long. And only today at question time in Parliament I raised the issue of the need for a new secondary school and yet again the Government refused to lay plans.

It is common sense that these things should be put right before the Government even thinks about forcing thousands of new homes on us.

TRAIN SERVICES
Another of our services which has been cut recently is the train service from Wellingborough to London and Nottingham. Many of you have contacted me with concerns since East Midlands Trains took over the Franchise from Midland Mainline at the end of last year. Concerns include the decreased frequency of trains, the inability for season ticket holders to reserve seats and the withdrawal of the free tea and coffee service. This of course follows the inflation busting increase in fares imposed by East Midlands Trains.

I met with the Managing Director of East Midlands Trains to make him aware of the many complaints about the cuts in service. Unfortunately the Managing Director would not budge on many of the decisions taken but he has promised that there will be more capacity on the trains in the near future and he is also looking at the possibility of a later train leaving London.

However, I am not happy that constituents are still finding the service badly run so I have asked for another meeting between the MD of East Midlands Trains plus the Chief Executive of Wellingborough Council. I will keep you informed of developments.

THE 10 PENCE TAX RATE
The Prime Minister and his Government have had to perform a complete u-turn on the 10p tax rate. Whatever the implications are for Gordon Brown this event has gone to prove that Parliament can still work to reverse bad decisions made by the Government. The Government has now been forced to compensate the poorest in society and it is pleasing to know that Parliament and democracy still works.


MEETINGS AND EVENTS
Recently I have attended a large number of meetings and events. I list some of them below:

Addressing the London Swinton Circle in Parliament – a debating group
Opening the Rushden Full Gospel Church Homelessness Shelter
Attending the Holocaust Memorial Service in Wellingborough
Visiting the Asylum Screening Unit in Croydon and the Immigration Service at Gatwick Airport in my role as Treasurer of the All Party Group on Human Trafficking
Speaking at the Post Office Closure protest meeting In Great Doddington
Attending the Wellingborough School Civic Service
Meeting with the Redhill Grange Residents Association to discuss overdevelopment
Attending a meeting with the Hatton Park Residents Association at the Bowls Club to discuss local issues
Meeting with the Managing Director of East Midlands Trains
Meeting with local farmers
Attending a dedication of Whitefriars Church by the Bishop of Brixworth
Visiting Freemans Endowed Church of England School to talk to pupils
Attending the Chelveston Parish Council meeting to listen to concerns about the proposed renewable energy park
Attending the Wellingborough-based Compost Association’s Annual dinner in the House of Commons
Meeting with Northamptonshire Primary Care Trust
Attending the Wellingborough Operatic Society’s Centenary at the Castle Theatre
Meeting with Croyland residents and local Councillors to listen to their concerns about the state of roads around the Kingsway area
Meeting with the Chief Executive of East Midlands Ambulance Service
Appearing on the BBC Politics Show to discuss overdevelopment in our area
Meeting with the Furnace Lance Action Group regarding overdevelopment in the north of Wellingborough
Attending the Rushden Salvation Army’s anniversary celebration and touring its facilities
Hosting a visit in Wellingborough with the Conservative Shadow Secretary for Works and Pensions Chris Grayling MP
Meeting with Wellingborough Homes
Meeting with the Chief Executive and Senior Officers at Wellingborough Council
Meeting with the Chief Superintendent of Police in Kettering
Attending the Annual Dinner of Pharmacists to which I was invited by Northamptonshire representatives
Visiting South Cambridgeshire as requested by the Conservative Shadow Health Secretary Andrew Lansley MP
Attending Newton Bromswold Parish Council meeting listen to concerns about the proposed renewable energy site.
Meeting with representatives from Biogen regarding renewable energy
Attending the Wellingborough Voluntary Community Sector Forum AGM at the Victoria Centre
Meeting with former pupils of Finedon Boys School at a reception in the House of Commons
Visiting Rushden Community College to talk to students
Attending the Associate Parliamentary Group for Justice for Road Traffic Victims AGM of which I am Secretary
Meeting with the residents of Crispian Court in Rushden to talk about elderly care provision
Attending a protest meeting in Irchester about the siting of a skate park in the village
   
I have also been made a Member of the Finance Bill Committee which meets four times a week in Parliament to go through the details of the budget announced this year. It is through the line by line scrutiny of the budget in committee that I’ll be able to highlight the Government’s inconsistencies and hopefully improve the Finance Bill.

The meeting that is missing from the above list is the one I was meant to have with the Health Minister at Kettering General Hospital. This was cancelled by the Government at the last minute but I am working on rearranging the meeting.

I continue to hold my weekly surgeries in Wellingborough and Rushden.
To make an appointment or to contact me my details are as follows:

Telephone: 01933 279 343
Email: bonep@parliament.uk
Address: Peter Bone MP, 21 High Street, Wellingborough, NN8 4JZP



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