Sharon speaking in the Arthritis Awareness Week Westminster Hall Debate 20.10.16
Image Copyright Parliamentary Recording Unit 2016
As Shadow Minister for Public Health, Sharon responded to a debate on Arthritis Awareness Week. In her speech, Sharon raised the concerns that more and more people would be diagnosed with this health condition, and the need for preventative measures to be considered whilst also looking at the false economy around cuts to public health grants, and for better awareness of symptoms and treatments.
You can read Sharon's speech in Hansard here: Sharon Hodgson MP Arthritis Awareness Week Westminster Hall Debate 20.10.16
Speech pasted below:
Arthritis Awareness Week Westminster Hall Debate 20.10.16
Sharon speaking in the Arthritis Awareness Week Westminster Hall Debate 20.10.16 Image Copyright Parliamentary Recording Unit 2016 As Shadow Minister for Public Health, Sharon responded to a debate on Arthritis...
Sharon Hodgson, Member of Parliament for Washington and Sunderland West, was presented with the Educatering Mag Special Award for her work on Universal Infant Free School Meals (UIFSM), specifically her integral role in committing the then Prime Minister, David Cameron, to protect funding for UIFSM at the Despatch Box after it was revealed that the scheme was going to be scrapped ahead of the Comprehensive Spending Review in 2015.
Sharon Hodgson MP received her award from Jamie Robbins, Managing Director of H2O Publishing and Hilary Hadley, Business Development Manager at Nestle Professional.
Before the award was presented, a citation was read out which said:
"This year’s winner is a real champion of school meals.
She [Sharon Hodgson MP] is a brilliant ambassador and supporter of all those that work in our industry. She has used her public position to promote and raise the profile and importance of feeding children healthy, nutritious and tasty meals at school.
Our winner set up the All Party Parliamentary Group on School Food which she chairs.
This forum gives the opportunity for all the interested organisations and individuals involved with school food to discuss the issues, put forward ideas and highlight concerns.
Importantly, the group ensures a route for the industry to influence Government policy and decisions.
As we were all very aware, this was never more vital than this time last year, when the recipient of tonight’s award played the most important card in the campaign to Save Universal Free School meals for our youngest customers.
The then Secretary of State for Education seemed to be determined to abolish these free meals. Following much lobbying and a petition which had some 42,000 signatures, Universal Free School meals was finally saved by her asking this question at Prime Ministers Question Time in Parliament to Mr Cameron.
She said: “Will you guarantee now not to scrap universal infant free school meals so you don't go down in history as Dave the dinner snatcher?"
This action saved Universal Free school meals, and we all owe her a huge thank you for all that she does to support us.
I have much pleasure in announcing that the winner of the EDUcatering Special Award 2016 is shadow health minister Sharon Hodgson MP."
After receiving her award, Sharon said:
“It is a real honour to have received this EDUcatering Mag award and have my work to ensure all children are eating a hot and healthy school meal, especially one that is free, recognised. The work that I have done over the years has been supported and formed by the commitment and passion shown by the school food sector, and it is wonderful that they have bestowed this special award on me.
“This award is a testament to the work we have done together which has seen so many improvements in school food in the last decade. There is still a lot more that we can and must do to improve school food, and the access to healthy and nutritious food all year round for children, and I will continue to work hard on this important matter.”
Pat Fellows, former Chair of the Lead Association for Education Catering (LACA), who has worked in the school meals service for 44 years, and who nominated Sharon Hodgson MP for the EDUcatering Mag special award, said:
“Sharon’s work on school food was never more vital than this time last year, when she played the most important card in the campaign to Save Universal Free School Meals for our youngest customers when the then Secretary of State for Education seemed to be determined to abolish these free meals.
“Following much lobbying and a petition in excess of 42,000 signatures, UIFSM was finally saved by Sharon asking Mr Cameron at Prime Ministers Question Time in Parliament if he would guarantee then not to scrap universal infant free school meals so he wouldn’t go down in history as ‘Dave the Dinner Snatcher?’.
“All of us involved in school meals are absolutely delighted that our “Champion” has won this prestigious award, so richly deserved”.
Sharon wins EDUcatering Mag Special Award for work on UIFSM
Sharon Hodgson, Member of Parliament for Washington and Sunderland West, was presented with the Educatering Mag Special Award for her work on Universal Infant Free School Meals (UIFSM), specifically her...
Sharon visits Simpson Print Group as it celebrates a decade on Wearside.
Sharon pictured here with Mark Simpson, Chair of Simpson Group, alongside their new Col-Tec Smart Collator.
Sharon visits Simpson Print Group as it celebrates a decade on Wearside
Sharon visits Simpson Print Group as it celebrates a decade on Wearside. Sharon pictured here with Mark Simpson, Chair of Simpson Group, alongside their new Col-Tec Smart Collator. Read more
Read Sharon's latest Sunderland Echo column below or find the published column on the Sunderland Echo website.
When the Prime Minister stood outside Downing Street earlier this year, she told the country that no one would be left behind.
Yet, in the months since her appointment, Theresa May has run roughshod over this promise and brought in plans which would take regressive steps back on improving the lives of many children and young people in our country with the introduction of Grammar Schools.
These plans, just like the Government’s plans to force all schools to become academies, have been met with opposition from across the political spectrum, including Labour’s Shadow Education Secretary Angela Rayner and the former Education Secretary, Nicky Morgan.
Add to this the anger from education experts, teachers, trade unions and most importantly, the wider public, and it is clear that the Government is not listening to the people.
The evidence is clear, as the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) showed last month, that where grammar schools are prevalent, such as in Kent, only 27% of pupils on free school meals achieved five good GCSEs.
The Government says that children on free school meals thrive in grammar schools, yet ignore the facts that the poorest children struggle in this form of education as shown by the IFS, and also that only 2.5% of grammar school entrants are entitled to free school meals.
It is absolutely paramount that we improve the education of children and young people in our country in order that the next generation have the skills and knowledge to achieve in the 21st century world of work.
However, deciding a child’s future prospects at the age of 11 is a highly damaging way of educating our children, which deserves to be left forgotten in the 1950s.
This is compounded when the financial means of more affluent families are used to help coach their children to excel and pass the 11+ exams, which disproportionately advantages their future education over that of children from families who do not have the means to have their child coached in this way.
This is why we should oppose these plans wherever possible.
Grammar schools are yet another example of how out of touch the Tories are with the public and the experts, and instead of stopping and listening to the evidence, are dragging us back to a failed educational system based on segregation. Instead the Government should be getting to work on the nuts and bolts issues facing our education system; ever-increasing class sizes and teacher shortages - not another bells and whistles restructuring of our schools which nobody wants or asked for.
ECHO COLUMN: Schools plan shows Tories out of touch
Read Sharon's latest Sunderland Echo column below or find the published column on the Sunderland Echo website. When the Prime Minister stood outside Downing Street earlier this year, she told...
Sharon speaking in the Tobacco Control Plan Westminster Hall Debate 13.10.16
Image Copyright Parliamentary Recording Unit 2016
As Shadow Minister for Public Health, Sharon responded to a debate on Tobacco Control Plans. In her speech, Sharon discussed the issue of regional and socio-economic variations in smoking prevalence, along with the take-up of smoking amongst children and young people and smoking amongst pregnant women. Sharon also called on the Government to explain their delayed introduction of a new Tobacco Control Plan.
You can read Sharon's speechin Hansard here: Sharon Hodgson MP Tobacco Control Plan Westminster Hall Debate 13.10.16
Speech pasted below:
Tobacco Control Plan Westminster Hall Debate 13.10.16
Sharon speaking in the Tobacco Control Plan Westminster Hall Debate 13.10.16 Image Copyright Parliamentary Recording Unit 2016 As Shadow Minister for Public Health, Sharon responded to a debate on Tobacco...
Sharon last night presented petitions sent to her on behalf of WASPI women in her constituency and their friends and family to Parliament which called on the Government to put in place transitional arrangements to mitigate the impact of the equalisation of the State Pension Age.
Copyright Parliamentary Recording Unit 2016
Following her call for constituents to sign the petition, Sharon Hodgson MP received a total of over 400 signatures from constituents, and on the evening of the 11th October presented the petition on the floor of the House, alongside many of her Parliamentary colleagues from across the House of Commons.
The handing in of the petitions was led by Barbara Keeley, MP for Worsley and Eccles, and included MPs from across the Chamber who presented petitions on behalf of their constituents.
Following the presentation of the petition, Sharon said:
“It was wonderful to see so many constituents signing this petition to support the WASPI women, who have been so unfairly impacted by the Government’s botched job of equalising the State Pension Age.
“I want to thank the over 400 constituents who took the time to sign this petition, who all agreed that the Government can and should be doing more to bring in transitional arrangements for those women born in the 1950s who have been affected so much by these changes.
“I hope that this will be a game-changer and we will finally see some movement from the Government in addressing the concerns of the WASPI women, after so many attempts have been made in the past but have been sadly ignored by ministers. This cannot continue to go on and something must be done now, and the Government has the power to do just that.”
ENDS
Sharon present petition on behalf of WASPI women
Sharon last night presented petitions sent to her on behalf of WASPI women in her constituency and their friends and family to Parliament which called on the Government to put...
Sharon hosted an Arts Summit reception in Parliament, which brought together all the arts-related APPGs to network and campaign on the importance of the arts to society, our economy and children's education.
You can read Sharon's speech below:
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Firstly, I want to take a moment to thank everyone for coming along this afternoon.
It is fantastic to see so many people from across Parliament, the cultural and creative industries and the education sector coming together to show our support for the arts and be a strong voice to raise awareness of our concerns for the future of the arts and creative industries.
Human creativity is important to us as it’s what makes us who we are. When the very first caveman drew a buffalo on the first cave wall and danced around the fire singing, creativity and artistic expression have been central to our very existence as individuals and as a society.
We should not betray that fact, and should instead harness the boundless nature of human creativity.
The arts are not just vitally important to us as individuals and as a society, but also to our economy. The arts make £84.1 billion per annum here in the UK, which is rising by 6% yearly.
This translates as £9.6 million an hour for the UK, or a whopping £160,000 a minute. Once I have finished addressing you this afternoon, the arts will have contributed £800,000 to our economy.
These figures cannot go ignored.
Yet, there is a risk that these impressive figures are in jeopardy from the ramifications of the country’s decision to exit the EU, along with the Government’s controversial education policies.
On Brexit, much of this has already been discussed by others in the sector, including Dezeen magazine which created their Brexit Design manifesto, which is supported by leading luminaries from across the design, architecture and arts industries who are asking for the Government to recognise the design world’s importance to our economy, but also its close connections to the EU, as one of its major export markets for design services.
Just in the last few weeks we have seen the internationalism and innovation of the UK’s arts and creative industries, with Frieze Arts Fair last weekend, where artists, art buyers and galleries from across the world descended on London to enjoy, buy and promote art. To last month, seeing London Fashion Week and London Design Week, showcasing the creativity and design innovation of some of our best assets here in the UK, to the rest of the world.
But note, it isn’t all a London-centric story, with over 60% of creative businesses outside of the capital – with games designers, such as Ubisoft, in Gateshead in the North East, and Media City in Manchester, to name just a few.
Arts and culture unite our country and highlight the best of British to the world. We cannot allow exiting the EU to damage these industries.
It is not only Brexit which may have an impact on our arts, creative and cultural industries, but also the current Government’, and previous Coalition Government’s, educational policies.
Many of you, in fact everyone in this room I would imagine, will have heard of the EBacc and the growing evidence that has shown that this school performance measure is having serious consequences on the uptake of arts subject in our schools.
It is obvious when we saw a decrease of 11,552 students taking an art and design GCSE last year, and a 33.4% decline in AS levels in art, then we are setting ourselves up for a serious pipeline problem where we will struggle to find new artists, designers and creators to allow the arts and creative industries to flourish.
When business is booming and consumers are enjoying what UK plc has to offer, we are seeing that education policies are failing to recognise the fact that creativity will be one of the main drivers of the 21st century economy.
To make sure the next generation is as successful as it possibly can be, we need to be educating them to take up the jobs of the future. Many of which won’t have been heard of yet, but as we all will agree, creativity will play a central role in those jobs of the future.
That is why this summit is important to begin the work of closer collaboration between Parliament and the creative industries and I hope that we will have great success come out of today, so we can champion common causes which affect such an important part of our society and economy.
Thank you.
Sharon speaks at Arts Summit in Parliament
Sharon hosted an Arts Summit reception in Parliament, which brought together all the arts-related APPGs to network and campaign on the importance of the arts to society, our economy and...
As Chair of the All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) for Art, Craft and Design in Education, Sharon brought together, for the first time, various other All-Party Parliamentary Group, including the Design and Innovation APPG, Performer’s Alliance Parliamentary Group, and the Arts. Health, Wellbeing, amongst others, to highlight the issues facing the arts, in both education and industry.
Sharon opened the event by speaking about the impact Brexit and the Government’s education policies, such as the EBacc, will have on our creative industries.
You can read Sharon’s speech here: http://www.sharonhodgson.org/sharon_speaks_at_arts_summit_in_parliament
Alongside Sharon’s speech, the summit attendees also heard from Kate Mason, Director of The Big Draw, and 16-year-old cartoonist, Zoom Rockman, who showcased an animated film for a school science project, which highlighted the cross-over between the arts and other subjects. The Summit also heard from Children’s Laureate, Chris Riddell, political cartoonist MARF and art educator Lily Elms who asked guests to draw onto a huge cartoon strip with their creative thoughts and ideas.
Following the event, Sharon said:
“It was wonderful to see a room which is usually devoted to the rigmarole of Parliamentary business used to showcase the importance of art education, not just to our children’s education and lives, but also society and economy as a whole.
“When the UK’s creative industries account for 5.8% of total jobs in the UK and contributes £160,000 per minute to our economy – which over the duration of the event would have contributed £19,200,000 to our economy, it is clear these figures cannot go on ignored. This is especially true when there is no clear Brexit strategy for the creative industries or considering the Government’s education policies, such as the EBacc, which will impact the creative pipeline.
“It is important that MPs have the opportunity to engage with the arts to fully understand its significance, and I hope that the summit will have reinforced the message that arts and creativity are central to our humanity, but also to our society and economy as a whole. There is still more to be done to raise awareness, but the work started at the Arts Summit on working collaboratively are crucial first steps to ensure our creative industries flourish.”
Sharon hosts “Drawn Together: Collaborating Creatively” Arts Summit in arliament 11.10.16.
As Chair of the All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) for Art, Craft and Design in Education, Sharon brought together, for the first time, various other All-Party Parliamentary Group, including the Design...
At her first outing at Health Questions as Labour’s new Shadow Minister for Public Health, Sharon raised the need for action to be taken on preventative measures to help change behaviours when it comes to the issue of rising obesity levels.
Image copyright Parliamentary Recording Unit 2016
During her exchange, Sharon highlighted the delayed and downgraded Childhood Obesity Plan as a policy which didn’t go far enough and quizzed the Public Health Minister on the need for assurances that the promised preventative strategy would be fully realised so that the next generation would be healthier than the last.
Following Health Questions, Sharon said:
“When the Childhood Obesity Strategy was published over the summer recess, I was dismayed to see it had been downgraded from the promised world-first strategy to a 13-page plan that rehashed many of the already announced policies the Government had come forward with.
“This is why it was important, especially on World Obesity Day, that I used my first outing at Health Questions as Shadow Minister for Public Health to seek assurances from the Government that they would do more to ensure that preventative measures were implemented to ensure that the next generation is healthier than the last.
“I welcomed what the Public Health Minister had to say, however, the time for warm rhetoric is over and what we need now is action to address rising obesity levels. Scrutiny of the Government’s actions will be paramount in the coming weeks and months ahead, to make sure any progress that is made will have a serious and positive impact on the health of the nation.”
ENDS
You can read Sharon’s exchange with the Public Health Minister here.
Sharon raises delayed Childhood Obesity Plan at Health Questions to coincide with World Obesity Day 11.10.16
At her first outing at Health Questions as Labour’s new Shadow Minister for Public Health, Sharon raised the need for action to be taken on preventative measures to help change...
Sharon Hodgson MP's report - July-Oct 2016 number 88
Read Sharon Hodgson MP's report - News from Westminster - July-Oct 2016 number 88
Sharon Hodgson MPs report July-Oct 2016 number 88
Sharon Hodgson MP's report - July-Oct 2016 number 88 Read Sharon Hodgson MP's report - News from Westminster - July-Oct 2016 number 88 Read more