Newspaper column 17 April 2019 - Brexit Update

This week Parliament is having its Easter recess – albeit a week late, and it is good to be able to spend time in the constituency, being out in the community, meeting local people and listening to what you have to say.

Clearly one subject continues to dominate these conversations as people want to know the latest situation on Brexit and let me know their views and hear mine.

Last week we saw another delay to the date that we are due to leave the EU. This time until the 31^st October at the latest. However, the EU left the door open for us to leave earlier if a Withdrawal Agreement can be approved by Parliament.

Like many I am very disappointed that we have not left the EU on schedule. It is an ongoing failure of the Political Establishment, here and in the EU, that has resulted in the current impasse. A delay is the last thing our country needs. Not only will it continue the uncertainty for businesses who are crying out for a decision and clarity on the way forward so they can plan and adapt as needed, but this delay will mean that Parliament will continue to be paralysed with Brexit dominating the political debate for more weeks and possibly months. It is also clear from my mail box that this delay is deepening the disillusionment and sense of betrayal that many are feeling.

If we cannot agree a deal to leave by 22^nd May we will also have to participate in the EU Parliamentary elections. Almost three years after the UK voted to leave the EU this will seem totally unacceptable to many people, it does to me.

The reality is that the solution to this situation is not more time. We have had more than two years to debate and find a way for us to leave the EU. What we need is the political will to deliver on the result of the referendum and real, bold leadership to find a way forward. Sadly, too many MPs have been guilty of publicly saying they respect the result of the referendum whilst working behind the scenes to do all they can to prevent it from happening.  

The past two years has been marked by those who have sought to undermine the negotiations in order to delay, dilute and ultimately prevent us from leaving. It is only once we are through this and the political history of this period is written that I believe we will really understand just how damaging to our national interests, and democracy, those who have fought against the democratic decision our country made will be fully known and assessed.

I believe it is time for MPs from all parties to come clean with the British people and be honest about their true intentions. For me, I remain committed to doing all I can to ensure we leave as soon as possible. I will particularly be focusing my efforts to ensure we can agree a deal for us to leave in time for us to not have to participate in the EU elections. I will be urging the Prime Minister to giving Parliament the opportunity to secure this as early as possible once Parliament returns after Easter and urging all MPs who say they are committed to honouring the referendum result to support the Withdrawal Agreement and getting us out of the EU.

Newspaper column 24 April 2019 - Progress on balloon and sky lantern changes

It has been good to be at home in Cornwall for the last week, meeting with local businesses and people and catching up with friends and family. I hope you were able to have some time to relax over the Easter Weekend enjoying the wonderful  weather.

It was good to see so many tourists around and hear reports from all sorts of businesses that they were busy. Hopefully this bodes well for another successful season for our vital local tourist industry.

It is times such as this weekend that remind us how lucky we are to live in a place with such amazing beaches and coastline that draw thousands of people to visit. The value of our beaches to our local economy cannot be over stated.

Both in my role as Chair of the All Party Parliamentary Group for Ocean Conservation and as the local MP, I have always taken seriously the importance of preserving our natural assets – regularly participating in beach cleans and working to change national policy.

Last year I was contacted by the Mid-Cornwall representative for Keep Britain Tidy who raised with me a particular issue that is one of the causes of the litter that pollutes our sea and beaches - that of balloon and sky lantern releases.

Currently under the Environmental Protection Act (EPA) 1990, which covers littering with fines of up to £2,500 for offences, releasing balloons and sky lanterns are not covered. Under this act it is an offence to drop “or otherwise deposit” litter in a public place. However releasing balloons and sky lanterns is not viewed as an offence under this Act.

In my view however, releasing balloons and lanterns is no different to littering. You are just throwing rubbish up instead of down, and we all know that what goes up must come down. We are particularly aware of this in a place such as Cornwall as so much of these items end up in the sea and on our coasts.

Earlier this year I attended the Plastic Free Cornwall Summit and heard from the many voluntary groups that are already doing so much in Cornwall about what a menace balloons and sky lanterns are to our wildlife and environment.

On Love Your Beach Day in February I raised this matter in Parliament, calling upon the government to consider reclassifying balloon releases as littering.

The legislation around this was last reviewed in 2013. There is much more awareness now of pollution caused by balloons and lanterns and amending the policy in this way is a sensible and achievable step to take.

With the growing national and global cultural awareness of littering and going ‘plastic free’, there is now the public will in place and the means to bring this in. As a result I recently requested a meeting with Michael Gove as the Secretary of State for the Environment to discuss this.

I was able to meet with him just before Parliament rose for the Easter recess and I was pleased that the Secretary of State agreed with me and as a result has now agreed to look at reviewing this issue and the legislation that covers it. I would like to thank all of the volunteer groups involved, both for their tireless work cleaning our beaches and also in bringing such an important and relevant issue to my attention.

I will await the outcome of the Secretary of State’s review with interest and will continue to work with all parties on environmental matters like this, which transcend party politics - something we can all agree on!

Campaign reply - Indicative Votes

A number of constituents have written to me with a campaign email seeking support for certain indicative votes in the House.

The difficulties over Brexit have arisen because MPs from all Parties have said one thing during the General Election – that they would honour the result of the referendum – and then all too often done all in their power to thwart Brexit.

Indicative votes serve only to pander and support such disgraceful and undemocratic behaviour and thus anything that seeks to undermine or delay Brexit will never have my support.

Campaign reply - Caroline Lucas early day motion.

A number of constituents have written to me regarding Caroline Lucas and her early day motion.

As a principle I never sign early day motions as they very rarely achieve anything whilst at the same time running up costs to the tax payer.

Caroline and I do not share the same approach to these matters, although I do take them very seriously.

The progress made by the UK on reducing carbon emissions is the envy of countless countries and whilst there is more to be done it is worth noting the progress made:  

·         Low carbon electricity generation is at a record high and now accounts for over 52 per cent of our electricity.

·          A reduction in greenhouse gases by a quarter since 2010.

·         Virtually all solar deployment has taken place under the Conservatives – up from 38.3 MW in 2010 to 13,070 MW in February 2019.

Whilst I am proud of the progress to date there is more to do and I will raise this again with ministers.

Campaign response – Let Us Vote campaign

Recently a number of constituents have written to be about extending the right to vote to UK residents who do not hold UK citizenship and UK citizens who are no longer residing in the UK.

I agree that UK citizens who live abroad ought to be given the right to vote. They are currently entitled to be registered to vote in UK Parliamentary elections for up to 15 years in the constituency they were registered in before leaving the UK.

The Government has committed to end the 15-year limit and introduce 'votes for life' in order to fulfil a key Conservative manifesto pledge.

Glyn Davies MP’s Overseas Electors Private Members Bill is currently making its way through Parliament and I am glad to say that I will be supporting Glyn to ensure that all Britons living abroad have a say over the government and policies of the country they are proud citizens ok.

However, I am cautious about extending the same voting rights to non-UK nationals, regardless of whether they are long term residents in this country or not.

British electoral law already provides for the citizens of nearly fifty Commonwealth countries, British Dependent Territories, and the Republic of Ireland to vote in both local and general elections in the UK.

Citizens of other EU countries may vote in the upcoming European Parliamentary and local elections but not in general elections. There are reciprocal arrangements for British citizens resident in other EU countries to vote in local elections.

Extending the right to vote in general elections and referendums to non-UK nationals devalues the concept and importance of citizenship.

Furthermore, the suggestion that up to 10 million non-UK nationals could become full electors in the UK overnight means that we would be even more susceptible to foreign influence in elections than we already are.

For these reasons I believe that it would be a mistake to extend the right to vote in general elections and referendums to all UK residents regardless of their nationality.

Campaign reply - Kyle Wilson amendment

A number of constituents have written to me asking me amongst other to support the Kyle Wilson amendment. This amendment sought to lay the way for a 2^nd Referendum on the decision to leave the EU – the so called confirmatory vote.

AS I have made clear many times – this is not something I can support. I will never vote for or support anything that seeks to undermine the result of the 2016 referendum and that includes any suggestion of further referendums.

What will do more to support our democracy and the UK is to ensure we leave the EU and all attempts to overturn the will of the majority who voted to leave will never have my support.

Campaign reply - Audio visual announcements on buses

A number of constituents have written to me about the introduction of audio visual (AV) announcements on buses.

As a member of the Transport Committee I have been delighted to see this technology in place on the many new buses and trains that have recently come into service locally  and whilst welcoming this there is a need to see more done.

Retro fitting AV to existing fleets might prove difficult but it must be considered as a further and basic aid to some of the most vulnerable in our society. I will be raising this issues with Ministers when I next see them.

Campaign reply - hedgerow and tree netting

A number of constituents have written to me over the issue of hedgerow and tree netting. I have followed this issue with some concern and note the large public response to the recent petition. The petition has been signed by over 310,000 people.

The Ministry of Housing has written to builders and developers to remind and no doubt alert them afresh regarding the legal obligations around this.

The petition will now be considered for a Parliamentary debate and as I am on the committee it is not appropriate to say much more.

There has been a number of  government and ministry statements on this:

"Netting trees and hedgerows is only appropriate where genuinely needed to protect birds from harm during development”.

"Any development project must consider the impact on local wildlife and take precautionary action to protect habitat”.

"Bird netting should be kept to a minimum, and used only to help protect birds during development."

"It is vital developers take these words on board and play their full role to make sure we can deliver new communities in an environmentally sustainable way."

As a result of the public outcry I understand a number of developers have stopped or removed netting.

Campaign reply – Letter ESA65B

A number of constituents have contacted me about letter ESA65B, which the Department for Work and Pensions has been sending to doctors of people claiming Employment and Support Allowance (ESA).

The emails I have received included a link to the original article from May 2018, which also included a link advising that the Member of Parliament who had raised this matter, Emma Dent Coad, was continuing to ask questions in Parliament on it.

If constituents follow that link, they will see Emma Dent Coad’s latest Parliamentary Question from 13 March 2019. I have included a copy of the question and reply below:

Question:

‘To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the Answer of 30 May 2018 to Question 146988 on the revised wording of the ESA65B letters sent to employment support allowance claimants’ GPs, on what date the meeting took place at which the British Medical Association and the Royal College of General Practitioners agreed to that revised wording.’

Reply:

‘The British Medical Association and the Royal College of General Practitioners agreed to the revised wording of the ESA65B on 4 August 2016.

The Department is committed to ensuring all of its communications are clear, accurate and understandable and we continuously improve our letters. We engage regularly with the welfare benefits advice sector and disability charities and take into account all of the feedback we receive.

We have received comments from a number of sources including MPs, stakeholder organisations and GPs on the current version of the ESA65B letter and will take all of their feedback into account when revising it.’

I am pleased that the content of the letter was approved following the correct process, including advice by medical professionals. I am also pleased that the Department for Work and Pensions has shown a commitment to continuously improve its letters and will be revising letter ESA65B because of the feedback received.

Of course ESA as a benefit is being phased out entirely and replaced by Universal Credit, so this should remove this letter entirely in the future.

I hope this is helpful in clarifying my position on this matter.

Newspaper column 17 April 2019 - Brexit Update

This week Parliament is having its Easter recess – albeit a week late, and it is good to be able to spend time in the constituency, being out in the community, meeting local people and listening to what you have to say.

Clearly one subject continues to dominate these conversations as people want to know the latest situation on Brexit and let me know their views and hear mine.

Last week we saw another delay to the date that we are due to leave the EU. This time until the 31^st October at the latest. However, the EU left the door open for us to leave earlier if a Withdrawal Agreement can be approved by Parliament.

Like many I am very disappointed that we have not left the EU on schedule. It is an ongoing failure of the Political Establishment, here and in the EU, that has resulted in the current impasse. A delay is the last thing our country needs. Not only will it continue the uncertainty for businesses who are crying out for a decision and clarity on the way forward so they can plan and adapt as needed, but this delay will mean that Parliament will continue to be paralysed with Brexit dominating the political debate for more weeks and possibly months. It is also clear from my mail box that this delay is deepening the disillusionment and sense of betrayal that many are feeling.

If we cannot agree a deal to leave by 22^nd May we will also have to participate in the EU Parliamentary elections. Almost three years after the UK voted to leave the EU this will seem totally unacceptable to many people, it does to me.

The reality is that the solution to this situation is not more time. We have had more than two years to debate and find a way for us to leave the EU. What we need is the political will to deliver on the result of the referendum and real, bold leadership to find a way forward. Sadly, too many MPs have been guilty of publicly saying they respect the result of the referendum whilst working behind the scenes to do all they can to prevent it from happening.  

The past two years has been marked by those who have sought to undermine the negotiations in order to delay, dilute and ultimately prevent us from leaving. It is only once we are through this and the political history of this period is written that I believe we will really understand just how damaging to our national interests, and democracy, those who have fought against the democratic decision our country made will be fully known and assessed.

I believe it is time for MPs from all parties to come clean with the British people and be honest about their true intentions. For me, I remain committed to doing all I can to ensure we leave as soon as possible. I will particularly be focusing my efforts to ensure we can agree a deal for us to leave in time for us to not have to participate in the EU elections. I will be urging the Prime Minister to giving Parliament the opportunity to secure this as early as possible once Parliament returns after Easter and urging all MPs who say they are committed to honouring the referendum result to support the Withdrawal Agreement and getting us out of the EU.

Extending Article 50

On Tuesday 9th April, Parliament again sought again to delay our exit of the EU by voting for an extension to Article 50. I, and 109 others voted against this extension, but it still passed. We now see the Prime Minister, again going back to the European Council to seek this extension.

I will reiterate what I have said many times, we need to honour the referendum and leave the EU. We have a mandate to deliver Brexit and we must do this.

I know a number of you had asked me to vote in favour of this extension but any further delay simply prolongs the uncertainty for businesses, continues to paralyse Parliament and further deepens the sense of disillusionment and betrayal many voters feel. This is not something I am prepared to support.

Campaign reply: Autism Training 1 May

A number of constituents have contacted me asking me to attend the Autism training sessions that have been booked in Parliament on 1 May.

I agree that at a time where our understanding of autism is increasing, there are more people than ever before being diagnosed as being on the autism spectrum. It is therefore more important than ever before that we know how to best help and support them and their families.

I will try to attend one of these sessions, Parliamentary business allowing, and will be interested to find out what more my staff and I can do to help.

Campaign reply - return medical cannabis to Emma Applebu

I have been contacted by some constituents asking me to intervene with the Prime Minister and Home Secretary and secure the return of medical cannabis to Emma Appleby.

While I have sympathy with the family in this case, I am unable to get involved with ongoing legal matters, nor regarding people who are not constituents living in the area I represent.

Cannabis is available by prescription for medical reasons in the UK but this rightly strictly controlled and regulated, with eligibility determined by doctors on a case by case basis.

If people have chosen to circumvent the system and travel abroad to purchase it, then they have to be prepared to face border security on their return.

Newspaper column 10 April 2019 - Keeping more of the money you earn

As I write this Brexit continues to dominate proceedings in Parliament. The situation is changing on a day by day basis. Last week things took several even more bizarre turns when firstly we had protestors gluing themselves to the public gallery windows while not wearing any clothes, followed by a leak in the Chamber, which meant Parliament had to rise early on Thursday in order to fix it, delaying the tabling of some business for this week.

Away from Parliament, last week saw excellent news as the amounts people can earn without having to pay tax went up again, the National Living Wage increased and fuel duties were frozen at the beginning of the new financial year.

The Personal Allowance went up to £12,500. The Personal Allowance is the amount you can earn before you have to pay Income Tax. You don’t have to pay income tax on the income you earn below this amount. As a result of the change, a typical basic-rate taxpayer will take home £130 more than in 2018-19.

Getting the Personal Allowance to £12,500 was a Manifesto Commitment of this Government and I am pleased to have seen it delivered one year earlier than previously planned.

As well as this we also saw the biggest ever increase to National Living Wage coming into effect from 1 April. Nationally, 1.8 million workers earning the National Living Wage will receive an additional £690 over the year from 1 April onwards.

This includes £7.70 per hour for 21 to 24-year olds, providing an additional £580 over the year for full-time workers, and £6.15 for 18 to 20-year olds, providing full-time workers with an additional £455 over the year. Taken together with changes to NLW, 2.1 million people will be receiving a pay increase, with workers in the retail and hospitality sectors due to benefit the most.

To put this into perspective, full-time workers receiving the National Living Wage will be more than £2,750 better off a year compared to 2015, when the rate was first announced.

As well as putting more money in your pocket and increasing the amount many people earn, the start of the new financial year also saw Fuel duty remain frozen for the ninth year in a row. This will remain at 57.95 pence per litre across the UK. This saves the average car driver £1,000.

This is all good news, allowing people to keep more of the money they earn and generating more money to put back into the economy and benefit everyone.

My team and I are here to serve the whole constituency and work hard to make a real difference to the lives of everyone needing support. The office is open to the public Monday – Friday 10.00am – 4.00pm (no appointment necessary). If there is an issue you would like my assistance on then please, either visit the office or contact me on either 01726 829379 or office@stevedouble.org.uk. Additionally, I hold regular, appointment only, advice surgeries across the constituency. Dates of these can be found at: www.stevedouble.org.uk/events

Campaign response - “Deliver Brexit on 29 March.”

A number of constituents have written to me with a campaign email “Deliver Brexit on 29 March.”

In an ideal world that is exactly what should have happened. The referendum was unequivocal. Article 50 laid out we would seek a deal and if not agreed we would go leave on world trade organisation terms.

With the House of Commons packed with MPs who are remain supporters, they have thwarted the will of the majority and thus there has been delay and uncertainty.

My focus and votes are always calculated to do what I can to see us leave the EU. We must honour Brexit. We must leave the EU. I will fight this all the way.

Campaign reply - latest on Brexit

A number of constituents have sent me a campaign email with various titles covering the governments handing of Brexit, the referendum and a further referendum.

One thing we can agree on is the handling of Brexit by both the government and Parliament in general has fallen short of what it should have been. There have been too many in Parliament who have undermined the governments negotiating position and worked to delay, dilute or prevent Brexit.

However, I believe it is vital that we deliver the result of the referendum and leave the EU. That is what I committed to do in the 2017 election and I intend to keep that commitment.

I do not share the  downbeat view of our future outside of the EU. We are the 5th largest economy in the world. I am confident we can and will continue to prosper after we leave. I also cannot accept that a county the size of the UK can only leave the EU on the terms they dictate – that is what saying we cannot leave without a deal actually means.

My views in a second referendum are well known and covered in blog posts already posted here but for the avoidance of doubt there are no circumstances that I will support such.

Campaign response – Revoke Article 50

A number of constituents who support a revocation of Article 50 have written to me asking if I would reconsider my position on Brexit.

It opens with “It’s a turd of a deal, but it’s better than crashing out; however, you must surely know that the best thing is to remain”.

I am glad that they have taken note of my particular choice of words in describing the Brexit deal which has been received much media attention.

That said, I disagree with the rest of their proposition as set out in the email, namely that we would be better off remaining in the EU and that “it makes no sense at all” to pursue Brexit.

My views on Brexit will be well known to them by now. 

What makes no sense to me and to the majority of the voters who for Brexit in the 2016 referendum is in fact any notion that we should revoke Article 50.

It is often forgotten these days that in 2017 the House of Commons voted by a majority of 384 votes (498-114) to trigger Article 50.

MPs including many who now advocate remaining in the EU, voted two years ago in favour of leaving of the EU.

The people of the United Kingdom, and the constituents of St Austell and Newquay especially by nearly a 2-1 margin, voted for our great nation to leave our membership of the European Union.

A key fundamental principle of our representative democracy is that when politicians go to the people to seek their views in a referendum or election, they are obliged to then deliver the outcome of that vote.

From the 1975 EEC Referendum to the 2011 Alternative Vote Referendum, the politicians that allowed the national referendum to take place has always delivered on the results of that particular referendum.

This does not mean the people are then forever bound to that decision, but it is incumbent upon government of the time to always deliver the results of the referendum after it is held, before subsequent governments can go back to the people to seek their opinion a second time.

I do not write these rules; this is simply how democracy works.

I am a democrat and I believe that in order to safeguard our democracy we need to implement the will of the nation, as expressed in the results of the referendum, by leaving the European Union as soon as possible.

Our future is bright outside of the European Union and I will continue to work hard to ensure that we have a deal that fully delivers the results of the 2016 referendum and for every constituent.

Campaign response – UN report on Gaza

I would like to thank constituents who have recently contacted me regarding the UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC) Commission of Inquiry into the Gaza border protests last year.

I am sorry to inform them that I do not sign Early Day Motions(EDMs), as apart from costing taxpayers unnecessary amounts of money, they rarely achieve any real change.

However I do share their dismay at the tragic loss of life in Gaza, which is a deeply concerning escalation in violence.

The UNHRC inquiry failed to examine the Hamas terror group’s involvement in the riots. For that reason the UK Government declined to support the subsequent report.

Hamas’s exploitation of a legitimate protest to further its well-documented violent intentions towards Israeli citizens is abhorrent. The terror group, which controls Gaza, encouraged riots and infiltration attempts into Israel, knowingly and deliberately putting Gazans in harm’s way. Social media was also used to encourage protestors to bring weapons hidden beneath their clothes.

Hamas Prime Minister Yahya Sinwar described the stated aim of the attempts to breach the border as follows: “We will take down the border and we will tear out their hearts from their bodies”.

The UNHRC report also neglected to note that in the first instance, Israeli soldiers used non-lethal crowd dispersal measures, with strict orders that they were only allowed to use live fire if their lives were in danger; if they saw critical border security infrastructure being damaged; or if they identified main instigators or a rush by a number of people towards the border.

Last Friday, the UK’s Permanent Representative to the UNHRC explained the UK’s decision to abstain on a vote to adopt the report in question by stating that Hamas bear “principal responsibility as their operatives have cynically exploited the protests”. The UK Government has also made clear that the presence of a dedicated agenda item concerning Israel in every UNHRC session amounts to “systemic institutional bias” and is an “impediment to dialogue” between Israel and the Palestinians.

I am also deeply concerned about the increase in indiscriminate rocket fire into Israel from Gaza. On Monday, a long-range Hamas missile destroyed a home in central Israel, wounding seven members of the Wolf family who are originally from the UK, including a 12-year-old girl, a 3-year-old boy and a 6 month old baby.

Over 60 rockets and mortars were fired at Israel this week, and Israel struck dozens of Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad targets in the Gaza Strip in response to the rocket fire. I am extremely disturbed by reports that Hamas is planning a ‘million man march’ to mark the one year anniversary of the border protests. It is also gravely concerning that the terror group violently suppressed protest movements in Gaza last week.

No doubt my constituents share my view that until Hamas seeks peace instead of terror, there can be no progress towards a peace resolution with Israel.

It is important to note that as is befitting of a democracy, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) have strict rules of engagement which conform to the laws of war, and Israel is currently carrying out an investigation into the conduct of its soldiers on the Gaza border.

Regarding arms sales, Israel is a long-term ally of the UK and shares many mutual interests, including close intelligence and military cooperation. As a country renowned for its high-tech expertise, the UK benefits from Israeli military technology. Israeli technology that the UK uses include battlefield medical technology, techniques for dealing with suicide bombers, and technology to counter remotely-detonated terrorist bombs. Israeli drone technology such as the Watchkeeper WK45 has also been used by British forces in Afghanistan for intelligence collection. These technologies have protected the lives of many British soldiers. 

An arms embargo on Israel and the wider boycott campaign stands to be damaging for UK-Israel bilateral relations, and is counterproductive to the peace process.

What is clear, above all, is that the need for a renewed peace process is more urgent than ever. The UK Government remains committed to a two-state solution through direct negotiations, and all parties involved as well as the international community must step up efforts without delay.