You can read Sharon's Sunderland Echo column below or on the Sunderland Echo website
Last week’s schools chaos shows that the Government’s priorities do not lie with families.
Parents finding out at 8pm on a Monday night that their children wouldn't be going to school the next day, after being reassured the opposite, indicates a wider problem; the Government’s incompetence is leaving families behind.
Seeing children out of school is disappointing, but is now necessary. Schools are open to vulnerable children and those with essential worker parents, but this limited safe capacity has quickly been filled leaving schools under serious pressure.
Meanwhile, parents who cannot work from home are being told to remain at work, creating a childcare issue and leaving parents with the difficult decision of working and keeping their job or looking after their family.
On Wednesday, after pressure from Labour, the Chancellor updated the guidance to make these parents aware that they would be eligible for furlough. But this is at the discretion of employers. It also means a 20% pay-cut.
That’s just not good enough. Once again, working parents are left to juggle childcare and work. It isn’t fair on parents, school staff or children.
As we face the deepest recession of any major economy, we must protect family incomes.
Labour is calling on the Government to create an immediate right for parents to request paid flexible furlough.
Child poverty levels were striking pre-pandemic, with 35% of children in the North East living in poverty. This has now worsened, regional inequality has intensified, and Councils have been starved of income.
Despite this, Boris and Rishi want to cut Universal Credit, which will mean millions of families lose £1,000 a year and another 200,000 children put into poverty. They also plan a raise in council tax, landing every family an extra £90 on their bill.
This harsh austerity won’t help our region build back its economy. It won’t help parents and children build back our communities. It certainly won’t level us up.
Not only are the Tories proving their incompetence, but they are proving that families are not their priority.
ECHO COLUMN: The Government is failing families
Sharon Hodgson MP's report - Dec 2020-Jan 2021 number 135
Click on the picture above to read Sharon Hodgson MP's report - Dec '20-Jan '21 number 135
Sharon Hodgson MP's report - Dec 2020-Jan 2021 no 135
You can read Sharon's latest Sunderland Echo column below or on the Sunderland Echo website
When Penshaw monument comes into view on the A1 or A19, you know you’re almost home.
The announcement of a coronavirus vaccine feels like that too.
There is now a route out of this pandemic and its hold on our daily lives; soon we may once again be able to hug our nearest and dearest.
A light has shone at the end of the tunnel, there is an end in sight.
We are almost home.
This of course could never have happened if it wasn’t for the hard work and dedication of scientists here in the UK. My congratulations and thanks go out to all who have helped us get this far.
But we cannot forget that by leaving us in heightened restrictions since September 18th and failing to support local businesses, the Government has disadvantaged the North East throughout this pandemic.
It is fantastic that Newcastle’s Royal Infirmary will be one of the first hospitals in the country used as a vaccine hub, with the North East yet again leading the way.
However, every part of our region must have the resources and plans in place to deliver the vaccination programme as promised.
The vaccine rollout will not happen overnight, but the Conservatives must not leave the North East at the back of the queue once again.
On Boxing Day 2018, Sunderland fans set the record for attendance of a League One football match, with over 46,000 fans in attendance. Two years on, even if under tier 2 restrictions, only 2,000 fans would be able to go and watch the Black Cats.
Our region’s economy needs fans back in stadiums, hospitality open and local businesses thriving once more.
I know that these measures have taken their toll on us all but with a review of restrictions on the way, we cannot undermine the progress we have made.
I therefore urge everyone to enjoy their festive celebrations in line with the national and regional guidance.
As ever, if you have any concerns, please email sharon.hodgson.mp@parliament.uk and I will do my best to help. I wish you and your families a very happy Christmas.
ECHO COLUMN: We must not be left at the back of the queue again
Sharon Hodgson MP's report - Nov-Dec 2020 number 134
Click on the picture above to read Sharon Hodgson MP's report - Nov-Dec 2020 number 134
Sharon Hodgson MP's report - Nov-Dec 2020 number 134
Sharon Hodgson MP's report - Oct-Nov 2020 number 133
Click on the picture above to read Sharon Hodgson MP's report - Oct-Nov 2020 number 133
Sharon Hodgson MP's report - Oct-Nov 2020 number 133
column
sunderland echo
Coronavirus
Child Poverty
North-South divide
Universal Credit
You can read Sharon's latest Sunderland Echo column below or on the Sunderland Echo website.
As the Government places Northern regions under experimental lockdown measures, without the financial backing to help them through, the North-South divide has never been so apparent.
But as people in our region know all too well, Tory neglect of the North predates Covid-19.
Local Authority budgets in our region have been savaged since 2010, exacerbating long-term regional inequalities between the North and South.
Shocking statistics from the End Child Poverty Coalition show that some of the largest increases in child poverty have come from Northern towns and cities, with the North East seeing the largest jump of any region in England.
In my constituency, 35% of children are growing up in poverty, an almost 9% increase since 2014/15.
This is before we even take into consideration the consequences of Covid-19, which has left the North East facing economic turmoil not seen since the days of Thatcher.
Families face significant economic uncertainty, and need reassurance that support will be there to help them care for their children and stop them from slipping into poverty.
However, the Government is threatening to slash the safety net even further, by scrapping the £20 uplift to Universal Credit in April, which will only make it harder to make ends meet and plunge our children into further hardship.
Tackling poverty and addressing its root causes needs to be at the heart of any Covid recovery plan, to ensure this pandemic does not commit a future generation to a life of deprivation.
The Government must urgently reform the social security net, and retain the £20 uplift in Universal Credit (UC) and apply this to other legacy benefits.
In the face of already unacceptable levels of child poverty, our country’s children are now at severe risk of being swept even deeper into deprivation. Reforming UC and maintaining the £20 uplift would put much-needed cash into the pockets of Britain’s poorest families, helping them through this crisis, and would put us back on path to a fairer, more just society in the aftermath of this pandemic.
ECHO COLUMN: Tory neglect continues to widen the North-South divide
Sharon Hodgson MP's report - Sep-Oct 2020 number 132
Click on the picture above to read Sharon Hodgson MP's report - Sep-Oct 2020 number 132
Sharon Hodgson MP's report - Sep-Oct 2020 number 132
You can read Sharon's recent Echo Column below or on the Sunderland Echo website.
Many families in our area have already been hit hard financially by the Coronavirus pandemic.
Yet, as they have done so often during this crisis, the Government recently overlooked the needs of working families in our region. Local lockdown measures were implemented at short notice, which effectively put an end to informal childcare arrangements.
This left parents who rely on support from grandparents, friends and family facing a choice between staying at home to care for their children and potentially losing their job, or finding formal childcare with no notice and no budget to pay for it.
Many constituents wrote to me to share their worries and anxieties. Families who were already often on low pay, particularly women and single parents, were left facing severe hardship. I wrote to Matt Hancock to raise their concerns, and asked the Government to reconsider.
Thankfully, Ministers relented, and have now said that informal childcare arrangements for those aged under 14 can continue, ensuring those who rely on them are not left under even more financial strain as we adjust to new local restrictions.
But whilst this decision has provided some relief to working parents, I know that for many of us the next few weeks will continue to be challenging. Local lockdown will keep friends and families apart, and businesses face renewed financial pressures.
Nobody wants to see any more restrictions on our daily life, but the concerning growth of this virus cannot be ignored.
I would therefore urge everyone to continue to follow local lockdown measures, which remain in place alongside the additional measures announced by Government. Please avoid visiting other people, only socialise with members of your own household, and only take essential journeys.
As ever, if any of my constituents have any concerns about these measures, please do email sharon.hodgson.mp@parliament.uk and I will do all I can to help you.
Our region has felt the impact of Covid-19 more severely than many others. We must now do everything we can to slow the rate of infection, and protect the NHS, our most vulnerable, and the health of those around us.
ECHO COLUMN: The next few weeks will continue to be challenging
Update on Coronavirus – September 2020
- As at 24 Sept 2020.
New measures have been introduced across the North East, including in our constituency, to try and bring down the rising number of Coronavirus cases. New nationwide guidance has also been introduced, but please note the local measures override those.
Update on Coronavirus – September 2020
Sharon Hodgson, Member of Parliament for Washington & and Sunderland West and Shadow Minister for Veterans has welcomed the new measures in Washington and Sunderland West and across the North East, aimed at curbing the rising cases of Coronavirus.
(Clicking on the above image will take you to guidance provided by the Government on the new restrictions)
Sharon is calling on all constituents to follow the measures, in order to keep everyone safe and ensure that our NHS is not overwhelmed.
Full guidance from the Government can be found here:
https://www.gov.uk/guidance/north-east-of-england-local-restrictions
Information from Sunderland City Council, including FAQs, can be found here:
https://www.sunderland.gov.uk/article/17375/New-Covid-19-restrictions-for-our-region-17-September
Sharon said:
‘’I welcome the new measures being introduced, as the rise in cases of coronavirus in recent days has been concerning. The Government must now provide any additional support that our Local Authority needs for improved testing and to support people where necessary.
‘’It is vitally important that everyone follows the new measures, in order to keep us all safe, and protect our NHS.
‘’This will be a challenging time for many people, but I know that we can work together and bring the cases down in the coming days and weeks.’’